


I’m Yours and You’re Mine

by bottomchanyeol, diamondbaek



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Pining, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-02
Updated: 2019-01-02
Packaged: 2019-10-02 22:23:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 35,383
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17272265
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bottomchanyeol/pseuds/bottomchanyeol, https://archiveofourown.org/users/diamondbaek/pseuds/diamondbaek
Summary: Chanyeol, a pink haired fairy, falls in love with a boy who always came to the forest that one summer and then never came back again. Years pass and when both of them had grown up, after a chance-sighting, Chanyeol begs the local wizard to make him a human so he can go search for the person he had fallen in love with.- This fanwork was written for round 2 of the bottom!Chanyeol fest [2018/19].





	I’m Yours and You’re Mine

**Author's Note:**

> Hi~ This is probably the hardest fic I had to write because I was so busy with so many other things but still, I enjoyed writing it! It was different from all the other things I’ve written before so it was fun!

Once upon a time a pink-haired Fae met a human who enjoyed going on adventures in the Forest by his home. Stumbling upon each other, they formed a friendship that quickly turned into something more. Well – 

At least for one of them.

** 10 years ago **

Chanyeol peeked through the foliage from where he perched on top of a branch, watching as the young boy stumbled around their side of the Forest with a book in his hands and a soft tune on his lips. 

The boy looked like he was around Chanyeol’s age but that didn’t really tell Chanyeol much because faeries aged differently. This boy was obviously younger than him if they were talking about the amount of years lived. There was a sense of innocence in those brown doe eyes of his as he looked around the Forest with wonder. 

It was no secret that this part of the Forest had a little bit of magic in it. Faeries, wizards and magic dwelled in this Forest and that boy was in Faerie territory. 

Chanyeol trailed along behind him, stepping from branch to branch on light feet, following the tune the boy was humming quietly, his ears picking up on the sound despite his height and its lack of volume. 

The boy reached the clearing where some of Chanyeol’s kind usually gathered at night to drink, sing and dance but at this time of the day, with the sun shining high above, most of the Faeries were all away, flying around the Forest and taking care of matters that concerned Faeries in the Forest.

Being a Fire Elemental Faerie, Chanyeol didn’t have anything to do during the day but avoid setting anything on fire and watch little lost boys walk around the Forest, apparently. 

The boy took a seat on one of the big boulders around the clearing, his humming louder now, and his lips finally forming the words he had been itching to sing ever since he entered the Forest. His voice was beautiful for someone so young. Beautiful and clear and mesmerizing. 

Faeries were creatures who loved music – any form of it. 

Chanyeol was even more intrigued by the boy now more than ever. Before he could stop himself, he floated down from his spot on the tree branches above the boy. At the sound of a twig cracking under Chanyeol’s bare feet, the boy immediately ceased his singing and whirled around, his eyes wide in fear. 

The boy’s gaze first went to Chanyeol’s pink hair then to his mismatched eyes, one blue and one a bright red then to his ears that ended on pointed tips, his gaze staying there the longest before travelling to the tentative smile on Chanyeol’s lips. 

“Faerie,” the boy breathed out in disbelief, the fear in his eyes morphing into that of fascination at the sight of Chanyeol. Howver, fear quickly returned to his brown eyes as he suddenly took a step back. 

“Please don’t eat me,” the boy whimpered. 

Chanyeol stared at him for a second, noting the way the boy had started trembling, his eyes flying everywhere, probably looking for a way out. With his enhanced senses, he could hear his heart racing, pounding inside that delicate chest. Chanyeol burst out with laughter at the sight of him and the boy only stared at him apprehensively.

“Calm down,” Chanyeol laughed, raising both of his hands in an attempted ‘I’m harmless’ gesture. “Faeries don’t really _eat_ people. Not even small boys like you.”

A little bit of strength seemed to come back to the boy as he straightened, lifting his chin in defiance though it did wobble a bit.

“I’m not small,” he said in what sounded like a very determined voice. Chanyeol took a step forward and to his credit, the boy didn’t retreat another step. With him being only a few steps away, the difference in their height could be seen – the boy almost a head shorter than the Fae. 

“Really?” Chanyeol asked, not convinced as he looked down at him. He pouted in response before slacking his shoulders in defeat.

“Okay, maybe I’m a little bit small,” the child grumbled, earning a huff of amusement from the Fae. “But that doesn’t mean that I won’t grow taller in a few more years.”

“How old are you anyway?” Chanyeol asked. 

“14.”

Chanyeol hummed in interest. The boy _was_ younger than Chanyeol; not that it was that obvious. His chestnut colored hair brushed across his forehead with the soft breeze and Chanyeol couldn’t help but admire just how pretty this child looked –  which was saying something because, being a Faerie, pretty faces were pretty much the only faces you’d see around their side of the Forest. 

Chanyeol cocked his head to the side as he continued studying the boy. The boy frowned at him and continued to look at him apprehensively, seeming to shrink under the Faerie’s stare. 

“What was the song you were singing?” Chanyeol asked and the boy couldn’t hide the surprise at the question from his eyes that widened a fraction before narrowing. 

“What’s it to you?” He replied, a bit shakily but with much more snap now. An amused smile played around Chanyeol’s lips. 

“I’m a Faerie,” Chanyeol shrugged. “Music is something that I rather enjoy talking about.”

“I wasn’t aware that Faeries liked making quaint conversation.”

This time, Chanyeol chuckled and took a seat on the boulder that the child had unoccupied. 

“We’re practically immortal. Without music and quaint conversation, we’d be nothing. Come, take a seat,” Chanyeol patted the spot beside him, “I promise I won’t bite.”

The brunette hesitated, glancing back and forth between the spot and Chanyeol. Sighing, Chanyeol slid from the boulder and settled himself down instead on the Forest floor in front of it, crossing his legs. 

“There, you sit there all by your lonesome and I’ll sit on the dirty ground.”

“What do you want from me?” The boy asked, still not taking the seat. 

“Well, your name for starters.”

“Are you going to use it to curse me?”

Chanyeol threw his head back and laughed into the clear blue sky. 

Oddly, the sound was comforting to the boy – it didn’t sound evil or menacing. It sounded warm and booming and welcoming. Without actually meaning to, his legs were just tired from trembling, he managed to convince himself, the boy took the seat on the boulder that was offered to him. 

“I’m guessing you probably don’t have that much experience with Faeries, then” Chanyeol shook his head. “Out of all the creatures in this Forest. We’re probably the nicest.”

“The nicest but not the least dangerous,” the boy pointed out, settling himself as comfortably as possible on the rock

“True,” Chanyeol nodded in consideration, before smiling up at the boy because he had finally taken the seat. “I’m Chanyeol by the way.”

“Baekhyun,” the boy said, a smile tugging on his lips. And even if it wasn’t a full smile (he couldn’t even call it a real smile), Chanyeol thought that Baekhyun would look very handsome with a full-blown grin on his face. 

“Well,” Chanyeol hummed. “ _Baekhyun_. What are you doing on our side of the Forest?”

Baekhyun shrugged gently, looking down and playing with the grooves and edges of the book in his hands. 

“I was bored and I got tired of the people from town.”

“Not like it’s any fun out here either,” Chanyeol snorted lightly as he looked around the empty meadow. 

“This early into the afternoon, anyway,” Chanyeol added with a grin. Baekhyun looked neither excited nor scared as he looked inquisitively around the empty meadow and Chanyeol could see him picturing what it might look like at night with the bonfires and the tents and the tables of silver and gold drinks.

“How old are you?” Baekhyun asked, looking back at him with curiosity glinting in his eyes. “And where are your wings?”

Baekhyun’s eyes danced over Chanyeol’s shoulders looking for any hint of the wings Faeries usually bore. 

“Way older than you and I don’t usually show my wings to strangers. They’re precious to every Faerie and very, _very_ sensitive.”

Their gazes met. 

“But you don’t even look older than me.”

Chanyeol rocked back and forth playfully, a grin on his face. 

“That’s because we age differently. I’ll probably reach maturity in a few years, quicker than you will.”

Baekhyun’s eyebrows furrowed together in confusion as he tried to do the arithmetic but after Chanyeol waved it away with a laugh, Baekhyun pouted. 

“What about the wings? Won’t you show them to me?”

“Come over more often and I’ll think about it,” Chanyeol said with a secretive smile. 

Baekhyun narrowed his eyes at him, probably thinking if the trek up to the meadow was worth seeing the beautiful wings stories had told him about. 

“You want me to keep coming here even though you yourself told me it isn’t fun at all?”

“With you, it might be a little fun,” Chanyeol perked up, the grin never leaving his face. It was exciting for him to have a new friend. He had plenty in the Forest but none of them were human. 

To Chanyeol’s surprise Baekhyun grinned along with him. 

“Just a little?”

The next afternoon, without even talking about it, they met up again in the same spot at the meadow. Chanyeol tried not to look like he had just spent all morning waiting for Baekhyun when the boy finally stumbled into the wide patch of green grass, squinting at the bright sun. 

“You came back,” Chanyeol jumped up from where he lounged on the ground, playing with a squirrel that quickly scurried off when it noticed Baekhyun. 

Baekhyun watched it run away before settling his eyes on a now towering Chanyeol and smiling softly.

“Well, yeah. I had nothing better to do. My lessons for today are done,” Baekhyun shrugged, walking closer to where Chanyeol stood. 

“That’s great!” Chanyeol said enthusiastically. “What do you want to do today?”

Chanyeol noticed that Baekhyun no longer held a book in his hands and had replaced his fancy shoes for leather boots. He also had a pack slung snugly over his bag. Chanyeol raised an eyebrow at his choice of wardrobe before meeting the boy’s eyes. 

“Running away?”

Baekhyun flushed under his gaze, playing with his hands.

“I was wondering if you could take me on a walk around the Forest. I’ve been wanting to explore more but I was scared to go off on my own. But since you’re here…” Baekhyun trailed off, looking away. 

Chanyeol could feel himself starting to get flustered with Baekhyun’s sudden shyness but he refused to acknowledge his cheeks that are now burning in embarrassment. 

“That’s – ,” Chanyeol cleared his throat when his voice caught, smiling softly at him. “That’s a good idea. What do you want to see first?”

“Whatever there is to see here in this Forest of yours.”

While they trekked through paths only Chanyeol seemed to see, Chanyeol urged Baekhyun to tell him of life as a human. 

“You’ve got nothing else to do all day than hang out with a Faerie you barely know?”

Baekhyun trailed along a few ways behind Chanyeol as the latter hopped from one large tree root to another. Now and again, Chanyeol would look over his shoulder, floating more than walking at this point to watch Baekhyun try to follow the gigantic leaps he took, physically impossible for the little human’s legs to imitate. 

Before Baekhyun could stumble headfirst into a hole under a particularly huge tree, Chanyeol swooped in and caught him by the arms, steadying him. Baekhyun’s grip on his arms was as tight as Chanyeol’s on his and for a moment, it felt as if they were holding each other up.

Baekhyun looked up from the mossy ground and smiled sheepishly at Chanyeol. 

“Sorry,” he said, his grip loosening but his hands remain where they were. “I’m not really the outdoorsy type.”

Chanyeol raised an eyebrow before cracking a smile. 

“I can see that.”

For the rest of their trek to the waterfalls Chanyeol wanted to bring them to, Chanyeol stuck close to Baekhyun, keeping a steady eye on the brunette, ready to catch Baekhyun again whenever he stumbled with Baekhyun only chuckling in response. Soon enough, Baekhyun could finally talk while walking, no longer poring all his concentration into watching where he was going. 

“I usually go to lessons with my older brother, Junmyeon, in the mornings after breakfast and they let me play with my younger brother, Sehun in the afternoon because Junmyeon has training,” Baekhyun told Chanyeol as they walked. 

“Training for what?” Chanyeol asked. 

Baekhyun shrugged. 

“Just this and that.”

They reached the waterfalls within another half an hour. Chanyeol was worried that Baekhyun might’ve been too tired to admire the sight but when he turned to look at him, awe was written in his youthful and beautiful face. 

Granted the waterfalls _were_ beautiful enough to warrant the awe and attention from the both of them, Chanyeol couldn’t bring himself to look away from the boy instead, from the way his eyes sparkled as they beheld the water raining down from above to the river meters below them. 

“Why haven’t I seen any other Faeries but you?” Baekhyun asked, bemused as they settled down on the ground to both admire the falls and to let Baekhyun rest. Slinging his bag down onto the ground, Baekhyun took a seat down beside it, already taking out packs of wrapped sandwiches before Chanyeol had lowered himself beside him. 

“They’re here, just lurking about and avoiding you,” Chanyeol assured him as he watched Baekhyun unwrap the sandwich and take a bite into it with keen interest. The smell of berries filled Chanyeol’s nostrils, seemingly familiar and yet different – sweeter. 

Baekhyun noticed the way Chanyeol was studying his sandwich causing him to quickly grab another from the small pack and swallow the food in his mouth to speak.

“Do you want one?” Baekhyun shook the wrapped sandwich toward Chanyeol’s direction. Chanyeol couldn’t stop his nose from wrinkling in suspicion. 

“Does it taste good?” 

Baekhyun let out a cheerful laugh that had Chanyeol glancing at him in surprise. It was the first time Chanyeol heard him laugh and the sound made something inside his chest flutter gently. 

“I guess you’re just going to have to give it a taste,” Baekhyun said, unwrapping the pack before offering it again. 

Chanyeol reached for it gingerly but before he could even a lay a finger on the bread, Baekhyun hastily drew it away. 

“Wait!” Baekhyun exclaimed, making Chanyeol glance at him again with wide eyes, retreating his hand as if the bread were just about to bite. 

“Human food isn’t poisonous to your kind, right?” Baekhyun pouted, now staring at the sandwich wearily. 

It was Chanyeol’s turn to chuckle. 

“Are you actually worried or do you just not want to share your food?”

“I’m genuinely worried! What if you choke and die? I won’t be able to find my way out of this huge Forest.” 

Chanyeol smiled lazily at him, finding the boy cuter and cuter by the second.

“I’m pretty sure you could still find your way out. You look like a smart enough kid.”

Baekhyun narrowed his eyes at the word ‘kid’ but before he could open his mouth to protest, Chanyeol plucked the sandwich from Baekhyun’s hands and brought it to his lips.

“And no, human food isn’t poisonous at all to faeries,” Chanyeol said, sniffing the sandwich first before taking a bite while Baekhyun watched him curiously. The familiar sour taste of berries balanced out by the added sugar exploded in Chanyeol’s mouth and he thanked the Gods that there was bread to absorb most of the taste. It was delicious, just a bit overwhelming.

When it didn’t seem like Chanyeol would just suddenly drop dead where he sat, Baekhyun smiled softly and took another bite out of his own sandwich. 

 Chanyeol swallowed and nodded and smiled wide. 

“Did you make this?”

Baekhyun only snorted. 

“No. I can’t cook to save my life.”

“But it’s just putting, what do you call them? Jam? ” Chanyeol scrutinized the purple berry filling. “It’s just putting jam on bread evenly and putting another piece of bread on top of that.”

“I don’t know,” Baekhyun just shrugged. “The cook usually just does it for me and the maids pack it up.”

Baekhyun must be of noble blood if he can afford a cook and a few maids to whip up a few sandwiches for him, Chanyeol mused. 

“What about your parents?” Chanyeol wondered.

“They’re usually busy.”

And there was something in Baekhyun’s tone that made Chanyeol refrain from prying into it more. 

“What about you?” Baekhyun began. “Do you Faeries just live in the trees? Don’t you have cities or markets or any of those?”

“We have villages here and there. And a city in the middle of the Forest. None that can be seen with the naked human eye though,” Chanyeol added smugly, dancing his fingers right in front of Baekhyun, letting a bit of his magic show, small sparks erupting in the air around his hand. 

“How come I can see _that_?” Baekhyun’s eyes widened at the little show of magic, enamored. Chanyeol couldn’t stop the smile that stretched across his face at the sight of the utter wonder in Baekhyun’s face. 

“Because I’m letting you see it.”

Baekhyun looked around and above, to the trees above them to the water flowing to their right and then leaned forward and whispered. 

“Are there Faeries watching us right now?” 

Chanyeol laughed. 

“No, like I said, they’re avoiding you.” 

The pout that settled on Baekhyun’s lips was cute and it made Chanyeol think so.

“Why?”

“Because you’re different.”

“Bad or good different?”

“Definitely good different.”

The next trip Baekhyun took to the Forest wasn’t until after three days and Chanyeol, poor glittery Chanyeol who waited by the meadow every afternoon tried to keep himself busy all those days that Baekhyun didn’t venture into the Forest with his young innocent face and his intelligent demeanor. 

They hadn’t made any promises besides the one where Baekhyun had promised to _try_ to visit often. And yet, Chanyeol still found himself going to the edge of that meadow every day just to check. 

On the third day without Baekhyun, Chanyeol had been flying over the Forest, bringing lunch over to his friend Jongin who was lounging around in one of the flower meadows he favored, watching as the petals flew around with the breeze at one gentle sweep of his hand. Though, Chanyeol stopped dead mid-flight and stayed airborne right there in the cover of the thick leaves when the sound of Baekhyun’s familiar voice reached him. 

He wasn’t close enough to hear the exact words of the song but the melody sounded something close to a lullaby. Lilting and soft. A song parents would sing their children to sleep with. 

Albeit it was faint, Chanyeol could tell that Baekhyun was singing loudly enough to be heard, as if he were calling Chanyeol over. The meadow they usually shared was meters to the west. Baekhyun might’ve arrived there and was surprised and anxious to find that Chanyeol was nowhere to be seen. 

Torn between going over to his friend to enjoy the lunch they arranged together on that morning and seeing Baekhyun again, Chanyeol chewed on his lip, as he debated between his choices for a split second. 

Though it was a no-brainer, Chanyeol eventually chose to go see Baekhyun, the basket of food still clutched in his hands. 

He could just apologize to Jongin later. 

Baekhyun’s singing grew louder as Chanyeol approached and though it was by no means a song for Chanyeol himself, he knew that Baekhyun was singing so that Chanyeol would hear. 

Chanyeol, with a bit of his magic, willed his wings to disappear before landing down beside Baekhyun with a small thud, only making a sound so that he could see Baekhyun jump a little in surprise. 

Which he did as he whirled around with wide eyes. 

His posture and expression relaxed when he heard Chanyeol laugh heartily.

“Miss me?” Chanyeol asked, happily walking over to him and sitting on the ground in front of Baekhyun as the latter sat on the rock just like the time they first met. 

“Yes,” Baekhyun said simply, smiling at him. “It gets boring back at home with no one to talk to. Myeonnie’s out for training and Sehunnie’s taking a nap.”

 “So I’m basically your third choice when hanging out?” Chanyeol jokingly raised a brow at Baekhyun, a little bit of warmth spreading through him at the thought that Baekhyun had _indeed_ missed him. 

“You should be grateful you’re even a choice.”

Chanyeol only scoffed.

Baekhyun let out a little chuckle before jerking his chin toward the basket on Chanyeol’s lap. 

“What’s that?”

Chanyeol looked down at the basket, having momentarily forgotten Jongin and his former plans. 

“Just some food,” Chanyeol shrugged, opening the lid to peek at the pile of fruits and nuts and a few pastries he had snuck from the King’s kitchens. He tilted it a bit so Baekhyun could get a look inside too.

Baekhyun’s brows rose, a rueful smile already on his lips. 

“Did you bring that for me? Are we going on a hike again?” Baekhyun bounced up and down excitedly on his seat. 

Now it was Chanyeol’s turn to tease him. 

“Why would I bring this much food for someone who only sees me as his third choice for a companion,” Chanyeol sniffed, flipping the lid closed once more. 

“Stop being so dramatic,” Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “They’re my brothers. What do you expect?”

Chanyeol only continued pouting, looking away from him. 

“Don’t tell me I’m the only friend you have. What kind of lonely life have you been leading before I arrived?” Baekhyun snickered at him. 

“That’s not true. I have friends. In fact, I was just about to meet one before I heard _you_ singing for _me_ to come find you.”

To Chanyeol’s delight, Baekhyun’s cheeks reddened a bit as he sputtered. 

“I – I wasn’t. I was finally alone, that’s all. I wanted to take that moment to finally sing out loud.”

Chanyeol briefly wondered why he couldn’t just sing out loud in the comfort of his own home but seeing Baekhyun flustered only made him want to tease him even more. He got to his feet and started brushing himself off, making it a point not to look at Baekhyun as he picked the basket off of the Forest floor.

“I guess I’ll leave you to your singing, then,” Chanyeol said as he turned, ready to fly away. 

“Wait, no!”

Chanyeol heard Baekhyun jump to his feet and as he looked over his shoulder, he saw the young boy pouting at him adorably, his hands fisted at his sides. 

“I actually really wanted to hang out with you this afternoon. I didn’t know if my singing would help you find me. You were just here in the middle of the field during the last time. I was a bit surprised to find that you weren’t here when I arrived.”

Chanyeol smiled at him disbelievingly, letting out a breathy chuckle as he turned back around to face Baekhyun. 

“You’re surprisingly honest for a human,” he mused. “The elders in our village tell us that humans rather enjoy lying.”

 “Not _everyone_ lies. I think it’s just a better alternative than having to tell the truth and suddenly get in trouble for it,” Baekhyun mumbled. 

Chanyeol walked forward and grabbed Baekhyun’s hand in his, tugging him along. He was pleasantly surprised that Baekhyun didn’t pull away from his grip. 

“Come on,” Chanyeol urged. “I know where to take you today.”

An excited grin broke out from Baekhyun’s face. 

“Where?”

“It’s a surprise,” Chanyeol answered in a sing-song voice as they entered the lush and green Forest once more.

“And by the way, I _do_ have things to do other than wait around for you here in the middle of the meadow you know.”

“I know that,” Baekhyun pouted at him. 

“That’s why you should tell me when you can deign to visit me ahead of time so I know when to wait for you,” Chanyeol said, squeezing Baekhyun’s hand, realizing that he _still was_ holding Baekhyun’s hand in his. It felt comfortable, natural even, to hold Baekhyun’s hand.

“I will. When I can. I promise.”

“You do know that Faeries take promises very, _very_ seriously.”

Chanyeol took him to his kingdom. The kingdom hidden behind the waterfalls he had taken Baekhyun to several days ago, away from the prying eyes of others. At first, Baekhyun didn’t seem to be that impressed to be taken to the same place twice but when Chanyeol led him to a path different from the one they had taken, any beginnings of complaints disappeared before they even left his lips. 

“Only guests take this road to our city,” Chanyeol began when Baekhyun followed behind him silently, glancing at everything around him. “So people will be staring at you from the moment you walk through the path.”

“Oh,” Baekhyun stopped in the middle of his tracks, making Chanyeol look behind his shoulder to see the younger suddenly fidgeting nervously. 

Baekhyun glanced up when he finally noticed that Chanyeol was staring at him amusedly. He cleared his throat and straightened as he tried to muster up some courage for Chanyeol to see. 

“That’s alright,” Baekhyun said as he started walking again, overtaking Chanyeol. “I’m used to being stared at anyway.”

Chanyeol’s eyebrows rose at that but he shrugged, smiling as he led Baekhyun to his Court. 

Behind the towering falls was one of the many entrances to their city, Elyxion. 

After much convincing from Chanyeol for Baekhyun to get on the small rowboat, they went on their way and into the dark cavern ahead. 

If Chanyeol had been a water faerie instead of a fire one, he wouldn’t have even bothered with the oars. But his abilities did prove to be useful when Baekhyun started fidgeting from where he sat on the bench, facing Chanyeol.

When the last of the light from the mouth of the cavern had faded away whilst Chanyeol rowed into the almost unnoticeable curve further into the cave, Baekhyun finally voiced his concerns and fears.

“I’m not really comfortable in the dark, Chanyeol,” Baekhyun said in a voice that was barely above a whisper. 

“Especially with,” he paused. Chanyeol could almost imagine the fear on his face as he heard Baekhyun gulp. “With nothing but water around.”

The mischievous Faerie part of Chanyeol wanted to stay silent and let the panic in Baekhyun rise but the part of him that genuinely cared for his newfound human friend won over. 

“Hey,” Chanyeol said, in what he hoped was a soothing voice, “It’s going to be okay.”

As soon as he said that, he conjured up a harmless ball of fire between them, warm and bright. It lit up Baekhyun’s terrified face and Chanyeol’s heart twisted at the sight. 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t warn you,” Chanyeol said in a softer voice.

The human merely shook his head, largely comforted by the small ball of fire bobbing between them and like always, whenever Chanyeol used any type of magic around him, Baekhyun stared with wonder.

“It’s okay. It’s my fault anyway for not telling you I was scared of the dark”

Chanyeol snorted as he continued rowing. He rarely ever took this route into the city, the muscles on his arms already starting to ache slightly but it was the easiest way for a human to pass through. 

“You slip into the Forest alone, fearless, and a little bit of darkness scares you?” 

At that, Chanyeol willed a few more balls of fire surround them, each a little bit more than a speck, shining in the dark like stars and lighting up the walls of the cavern. 

The show of magic caused a strain somewhere in Chanyeol’s reserves  and he could feel the exertion in his gut but it was worth it when he saw Baekhyun start at the sudden flickering brightness, twisting this way and that to get a look at all the floating lights.  

“ _How powerful are you?_ ” Baekhyun gaped at Chanyeol. 

The latter only laughed as he continued rowing home.

Chanyeol helped Baekhyun out of the boat because the human had become preoccupied with taking in his surroundings. Gone were the tall trees and the grass and root covered ground. All of that replaced with stone walkways and houses and shopping stalls with all types of Faeries mingling about.

The city was colorful, especially seen from above as how Chanyeol usually saw it when he flew from one end of the city to the other. With the differently colored tiles of the houses’ roofs and the art district always in full bloom with musicians and performers travelling from one stage to another, it evident that this Faerie Court valued art and magic above anything else.

The Faeries in Elyxion didn’t stare at Baekhyun like Chanyeol thought they would. They spared him a second glance but they didn’t stop and stare. It must have been because Baekhyun blended in well with the others – with his pretty face and perfect complexion, he looked like one of the younger Faeries in their Court. 

Though the _Faeries_ didn’t stop and stare, Baekhyun seemed inclined to do so at every shop and tavern and corner and plant that they passed, which was cute if only it didn’t bring more attention towards them. 

“You _could_ be a bit more subtle about being a human, you know,” Chanyeol chuckled as they continued walking down the stone street. 

“Your kind can smell me from a mile away anyway, I don’t see the point,” Baekhyun merely smiled as he continued admiring one of the smaller fairies flying around them, chasing Chanyeol because he usually gave them treats whenever he could. 

“Where _are_ you taking me?” 

“To meet a friend who’s been asking about you since the first day I caught you in the Forest.”

Baekhyun glanced up at him but stayed silent, probably expecting more of an answer from Chanyeol. 

“There’s nothing that happens in our Forest that he doesn’t know about. He heard you singing even all the way from here.”

At that, Baekhyun reddened a bit.

“I wasn’t aware I was singing so loud,” he muttered.

As they crossed the bridge over the river that ran across the city. Now slightly elevated, Baekhyun finally took notice of the castle he was being led to, stopping dead in his tracks. The scent of his sudden fear filled Chanyeol’s senses, making him turn around in alarm. 

“What is it?” Chanyeol asked, whirling and taking a look at their surroundings for what might have triggered Baekhyun’s fear. 

But there was nothing to be found. 

“What’s wrong?” Chanyeol asked Baekhyun softly. The poor human looked like he was ready to turn around and make a run for it.

“You’re taking me to your King, aren’t you?”

Chanyeol straightened in surprise before cocking his head to the side and giving Baekhyun a lopsided smile.

“How did you guess?” 

Chanyeol couldn’t understand why Baekhyun was suddenly so scared. The King was nice and kind and he was Chanyeol’s good friend, despite being younger than him by a few decades.  

“I don’t think I want to meet him, Chanyeol,” Baekhyun admitted.

“Why not? He isn’t going to hurt you, I promise,” Chanyeol tried to reassure him, walking them to the side of the bridge, letting him lean on the railings to get his thoughts together. 

Perhaps Chanyeol was moving things too fast for the little human. 

Baekhyun looked up from the ground with a steady determination in his eyes, seemingly forced. 

“You promise?”

Chanyeol let out a small smile.

“I’ve never understood why humans need to be constantly reassured. Yes, I promise. The King is even nicer than I am,” Chanyeol grinned at Baekhyun who still looked a bit doubtful. “The worst he can do is make you sing with him.”

Baekhyun frowned but nodded. 

“As long as he doesn’t curse me or anything then I guess… it’s okay.”

Chanyeol let out a hearty laugh to which Baekhyun glared at as he put an arm around Baekhyun’s shoulders and pulled him back unto their walk toward the castle. 

“And here I thought you’d want an adventure as big as this.”

The fear that filled Baekhyun quickly faded away as they neared the castle and Chanyeol slightly turned to him to know why. What greeted him was Baekhyun looking up at the beautiful half-stone, half-glass castle before them, his eyes shining in that familiar wonder and awe.

“Don’t you have castles over in the Human Realm?” Chanyeol chuckled, his arm still around Baekhyun’s shoulder.

“Not as beautiful as this one. This looks like it came out of a fairy tale.”

From high above, Faeries who were allowed through the multiple wards flew in through the entrances in carved into the towers as they usually did, their wings glinting in the sunlight. Chanyeol usually entered straight through the Prince’s room just because he can. Jongin didn’t mind anyway. 

“Aren’t there any other protective spells around your castle other than the guards here and there?” Baekhyun asked, looking around as they walked through the castle grounds, Chanyeol leading him directly toward one of the garden parlors he knew his King loved lounging in, accompanied by his warlock best friend. 

“There are dozens,” Chanyeol said in a knowing tone. “But they only keep out those who have bad intentions. As long as you don’t plan on hurting anyone in the castle or stealing anything, they usually let you in. The guards still watch closely but they’re usually nice.”

Baekhyun let out a hum. 

They entered a beautiful courtyard lush with trees and flowering bushes all around, a huge fountain in the middle of it all. And on the edge of the fountain sat another Faerie, younger than Chanyeol but not by much, his friend, the Prince, Jongin. 

He looked to be reading another one of his books, his silver hair messy and untamed.

The moment Chanyeol and Baekhyun stepped into the courtyard, he looked up in surprise, his icy blue eyes sharpening.

“Chanyeol!” He exclaimed excitedly before pouting. “You didn’t come to meet me out on the flower fields.”

“Sorry,” Chanyeol smiled apologetically before inclining his head in Baekhyun’s direction who had stopped a few steps behind him at the sight of another Faerie. “I had to meet up with someone else.”

Jongin stretched and strained his neck to look over Chanyeol’s tall shoulder to catch a peek of Baekhyun, who, to his credit, no longer seemed to be scared, just a little bit nervous. Jongin stood from where he perched on the stone edge of the fountain and approached them gracefully with a shy little smile on his face.

“The human.”

Chanyeol nodded, moving to the side so they could see each other better, keeping one eye trained on Baekhyun for his reaction. 

Jongin smiled and bowed at the waist, his princely manners pushing him to do so.

“It’s nice to meet you, human. My name is Jongin.”

Baekhyun followed suit, bowing at the waist because he saw Jongin do so, making Chanyeol laugh behind his hand. 

“I’m Baekhyun.”

“I assume you’re taking him to Jongdae,” Jongin looked to Chanyeol for confirmation to which Chanyeol just shrugged. Jongin then turned to Baekhyun again and gave him a handsome, reassuring smile. 

“Right this way, then.” Jongin said, walking back inside the castle halls.

Baekhyun followed obediently behind Jongin, Chanyeol falling behind to match Baekhyun’s pace. 

“Is he older or younger than me?” Baekhyun asked Chanyeol in a whisper that Chanyeol was sure that Jongin heard. 

“I’m not really sure” Chanyeol whispered back. “Humans and Faeries age differently, but he _is_ younger than me.”

“By a few years,” Jongin sniffed from ahead, glancing at them over a shoulder.

“Still younger,” Chanyeol stuck out his tongue, making Baekhyun chuckle beside him. Chanyeol was glad Baekhyun was starting to feel a bit more comfortable than he did earlier though there was still that cautious tension in his body as he walked. 

Jongin turned a corner and a set of closed doors greeted them. 

“Isn’t the King supposed to be in the throne room?” Baekhyun asked. 

“Not this one,” Jongin laughed. “He loves being in the center of nature so he usually hangs out in here.”

“It _can_ be considered his throne room,” Chanyeol amended. “He has a throne in here, too, doesn’t he?”

“He calls every chair he sits on in this whole Court his throne.”

Jongin, with the help of Chanyeol, pushed the doors open to reveal a _lot_ of green, the air fresher than anywhere else in the entire kingdom. It was a hidden and protected part of the Forest, the doors from the castle being one of the very few entrances that led toward it. It was where their King usually spent most of his time whenever he wasn’t needed in the city. 

“What was the point in leading me all the way here if you were bringing me back to the Forest anyway,” Baekhyun mused but he didn’t falter when Chanyeol gestured for him to get in before he and Jongin could close the doors again. 

Jongin snickered silently from the side. 

“Because you never could have survived the other entrances,” Chanyeol said simply before offering his hand over to Baekhyun. “Now, come on, there are a whole lot more things to trip over here than your Forest.”

Baekhyun didn’t hesitate to accept the helping hand, warming a bit of Chanyeol’s heart in pleasant surprise that the human was already so comfortable with him when they barely know anything about each other.

Chanyeol gave Baekhyun’s hand a little squeeze before going on their way, Jongin trailing beside them on light feet. 

“We call this place the Sanctuary.”

As soon as Chanyeol said that, little lights began flying around them in excitement, humming a melody as they went. Fairies. Little animals and creatures began crawling and hopping and stepping out from where they were hiding behind trees and bushes as well, as if to greet and welcome Baekhyun into their home, following after them curiously. 

“I can see why,” Baekhyun murmured as he looked around with wide eyes. 

“I’m surprised you’re taking all of this in so well,” Chanyeol laughed. “Isn’t this a little bit too much for a human who just discovered Faeries were real a week ago?”

“I guess I haven’t lost the childish wonder like I thought,” a smile tugged at Baekhyun’s lips and the sight of it tugged at something in Chanyeol’s chest. “Besides, I’m good with weird.”

“What’s the difference between the Fairies that are – uh – smaller and the Faeries like you guys?” Baekhyun asked as they walked through the Forest slowly, gesturing to Chanyeol and Jongin. 

“Don’t your story books tell you that?” Jongin grinned at Baekhyun frighteningly, all teeth and his eyes flashing brightly.

Chanyeol rolled his eyes at his friend before looking down at Baekhyun as he answered. 

“The proper term to call us is actually Fae,” Chanyeol smiled cheekily at the human. “Or you could call them Pixies but that isn’t wholly accurate either. The tall, beautiful ones like us – “

Jongin snorted.

“ – are called Fae and the _small_ , pretty ones are what you call Fairies.”

“Okay,” Baekhyun nodded slowly, processing the information. “Do the faeries have powers like you do?”

“Well, they have their own but you’d need a dozen or more to even be a match to the abilities a Fae child could possess.”

The trees and foliage grew denser with every step they took closer to King’s throne and soon a patch of clear, green grass that stretched all the way over to a vine covered entrance appeared by their feet, a path straight to the heart of the Sanctuary, where the King was waiting. 

“Always so theatrical,” Jongin muttered with a sigh as Chanyeol and Baekhyun chuckled. Chanyeol could feel Baekhyun’s palm sweating in his so he squeezed it again. 

“You’re going to be fine,” Chanyeol reassured him. “I’m here.”

Some small part of Chanyeol cringed when he said that, especially with Jongin there to witness it, but it was overshadowed by the feeling of satisfaction to see Baekhyun smile up at him gratefully. 

The walk was shorter than it seemed, as if the Forest was moving along with them, eager to get them where they wanted to be. Soon, they were standing in front of the spill of vines covering the entrance to the King’s glen. 

Jongin just strode in the way he usually did, lifting the green vines over his head, giving Chanyeol and Baekhyun a peek of the throne of gnarled roots and the blonde male perched upon it, and walked in, leaving the both of them to have a moment to themselves. 

Baekhyun seemed to gulp at the short glimpse of the King but he put on a brave face that had Chanyeol smiling down at him adoringly. Baekhyun looked up to meet his eyes and even that small eye contact seemed to send a crack of something that burned like magic through Chanyeol. It was enough of a shock to make him pause, his breath hitching in his throat. 

_ What was that? _ He thought to himself. He had never felt anything like it. Was it something that Baekhyun did? 

Chanyeol started searching Baekhyun’s eyes for any sign of that burning and tugging feeling but he found nothing. 

“Why do you look more nervous than I do?”

Baekhyun’s voice snapped Chanyeol out of his thought, making him shake his head slightly to shake away the thoughts in it. They were still standing just outside the Grove, the males inside probably trying their hardest not to eavesdrop.

“I’m not nervous. I just…had a thought.”

“Well, stop _looking_ nervous,” Baekhyun said, looking a bit jittery again. “You’re making me nervous.”

That made Chanyeol laugh.

“You’re going to be fine,” Chanyeol insisted. “Just think of it as me introducing you to a good friend of mine. It’s really nothing special.”

“Yeah, except your friend is a King of magical creatures who has the ability to kill me or enslave me or torture me if I make a wrong move.”

“I’d be offended if I didn’t find you so funny, human. No one is going to harm you. I give you my word.”

Baekhyun looked away from him, puffing out a breath of air as he stared at the entrance. 

“Let’s get this over with,” he muttered.

“You’re making this so much worse than it really is,” Chanyeol chuckled, gathering some of the vines from the middle and pushing them to the side to let the both of them through. He stepped inside, pulling Baekhyun who seemed inclined to be pulled the rest of the way, along with him. 

A few low tables were scattered all over the wide space, laden with food and surrounded by sheets and silks and pillows to lay and sit on. There were a few faeries of different colors, shapes and sizes mingling about and small rabbits and squirrels and lynxes scurrying around.

But in the center, surrounded by trees older than any of them, trees that seem to sing with the breeze as it blew by – sat King Jongdae, curl-ended lips and all. He lounged comfortably on his throne made of gnarled roots, dark wood and more green vines that snaked across the heart of the Grove. On his dirty blonde hair, rested a crown of wild flowers, one he preferred over the heavy gold and silver ones that tended to dig into his scalp or so he said. 

He was chatting with his brother animatedly before Chanyeol and Baekhyun walked in and stopped abruptly when they did. 

He sat up in his chair, his green eyes glowing when it landed on Chanyeol who merely grinned at his King. 

His gaze slowly slid to Baekhyun. 

“The human you kept telling me about,” Jongdae mused, smiling softly at Baekhyun.

Chanyeol felt Baekhyun stiffen from beside him, the latter’s grip on his hand tightening before he bent forward in a bow. The little faeries that had been flying around, bearing fruits and conversing amongst themselves and the animals now settled down on the branches of the trees around them to watch, each a small ball of light against the green.

“Your Majesty.”

“At least _he_ has manners, Chanyeol,” Jongdae chuckled. 

“Oh, I was just getting ready to kneel on the ground for you.”

Prince Jongin and King Jongdae each let out huffs of laughter, shaking their heads. Jongdae’s gaze went back to Baekhyun who still faced the ground in a bow. 

“You can rise now, child. I would’ve much rather you didn’t bow at all. We don’t need such formalities here,” Jongdae, again, smiled softly at Baekhyun as he finally straightened up, a bit flush with embarrassment. 

“I’m sorry,” Baekhyun said, inclining his head again. “Your Majesty.”

“Don’t apologize,” Chanyeol insisted, squeezing the hand Baekhyun had in his before bending down to whisper in his ear lowly. “It’s alright, you don’t have to call him ‘Majesty’ either. It just feeds his ego.”

“Okay,” Baekhyun whispered back. 

“I heard that,” Jongdae grumbled, making Chanyeol and Jongin laugh and Baekhyun to crack a smile. 

Chanyeol led Baekhyun forward, closer to where Jongin had taken a seat, cross-legged on the ground, opting for the feel of the earth beneath his bare feet instead of the soft silks just behind him. 

Chanyeol offered Baekhyun a cushion and Baekhyun, bless him, looked up to the King for confirmation, silently conveying the question with his eyes. 

With a light laugh, Jongdae nodded and waved a hand in a gesture for Baekhyun to sit down where he pleased. Another wave of his hand had a bowl of fruit floating on a phantom wind unto Baekhyun’s lap. Baekhyun stared at it as it landed softly between his open arms. 

“Or would you prefer sweets?” Jongdae asked, genuinely wanting Baekhyun to feel comfortable. 

Baekhyun shook his head and Chanyeol watched as he turned to him for assurance. 

“It’s just that, we – uh – humans are told stories about Faerie, _oh_ ,” Baekhyun coughed to cover his mistake, “ – _Fae_ and the food they offer.”

“It isn’t going to keep you trapped here, don’t worry,” Jongdae laughed. “It isn’t going to make you go all crazy either. That’s being saved up for the _really_ big parties.”

Baekhyun nodded slowly but still didn’t reach for a fruit but he didn’t put it down either just to be polite. 

“You ate everything I offered you before, though?” Chanyeol leaned toward him to whisper. 

“Well,” Baekhyun flushed. “You didn’t kill me the first time we met, I doubted you’d poison me the second or the third time around.”

That made Chanyeol smile, satisfaction all over his posture as he leaned back. 

A few seconds later, still no one had spoken again and Chanyeol could tell that Baekhyun was starting to get just a bit uncomfortable with the way Jongdae studied him curiously. He tried to look at literally anything else in the Grove, avoiding the King’s eyes. 

Jongin was only silent because he had started stuffing his face with various foods he found on the table, making quiet and short conversations with the squirrel munching on an acorn beside him.

Chanyeol, not one for awkward silences himself, put it upon himself to break it.

“Where’s Minseok?” He asked, rocking backward and forward, his legs crossed in front of him. 

“In his cottage somewhere in the forest, I guess,” Jongdae shrugged. “Or the city. We had an argument.”

“Who’s Minseok?” Baekhyun leaned over to whisper in Chanyeol’s ear. 

“His mate.”

“What was it about this time?” This time it was Jongin who asked. Baekhyun just whipped his head back and forth between the three of them, interested and curious but not saying anything to stand out.

“Something about me saving a rabbit he had planned on using for a potion,” Jongdae waved a hand of dismissal. “It’s not my fault that rabbit was pleading me with those bright, helpless eyes of hers.”

Jongdae sniffed. 

“I wasn’t planning on killing it and you know it, Dae,” someone said from behind Jongdae’s throne. “I just needed a bit of its fur.” 

Baekhyun startled at the sound of his voice and stared as Minseok walked into their view. He wore simple clothes beneath his blue robes, a rabbit held in his arms. 

A rabbit he plopped into Jongdae’s arms unceremoniously as he passed by on his way to stand beside Jongin who smiled up at his brother’s lover. 

“Happy?” 

Jongdae beamed up at the wizard genuinely, stroking the rabbit. 

“Very.”

Minseok let a little smile slip from his lips before plopping down on the carpet of grass beside Jongin comfortably. 

At that, Jongdae set his attention back on Baekhyun, relatively in a more cheery mood (not like he wasn’t already).

“So, human –,” Jongdae began but Chanyeol cut him off.

“Baekhyun,” Chanyeol said. This made Baekhyun and Jongdae (and Minseok and Jongin) look at him in surprise.

“Yeah?” Baekhyun asked cautiously.

“No, I meant. His name is Baekhyun, Your Majesty,” Chanyeol met Jongdae’s amused gaze. “Not ‘human’.”

Baekhyun snorted. “You call me ‘little human’ all the time. I don’t see how different it is when…”

He trailed off, flushing red in embarrassment, when he noticed that all the Fae (and the wizard) in that glen were looking at him.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to –“

“It’s alright, it’s alright,” Jongdae laughed, waving off the apologies. “It’s nice to hear your voice, _Baekhyun_. You can speak freely here. I won’t punish you for it, especially if it’s telling for Chanyeol off.”

Chanyeol made a face at his king but ignored the quip. 

“Speaking of your voice,” Jongdae began with a mischievous glint back in his eyes. “Do you know why I requested that Chanyeol bring you here?”

“Uhm,” Baekhyun cleared his throat self-consciously. “He might have mentioned it but personally…I don’t think my voice is that good.”

Chanyeol scoffed from where he was seated. Baekhyun had one of the most beautiful voices Chanyeol had ever heard. 

“Your humility is an attractive trait, Baekhyun, but I assure you, I’ve heard your voice,” Jongdae smiled. “And I think it’s wonderful. Would you do me the uttermost pleasure of letting me hear it again?”

“I’m not very good at singing in front of an audience,” Baekhyun admitted and yet still stood up from his seat on the plush cushion. “In fact, I don’t sing in front of people at all.”

Maybe that was why Baekhyun had felt nervous as they were walking here, Chanyeol considered. It wasn’t because of the King that might strike him down (mostly, anyway) but because he wasn’t keen on being forced to sing in the presence of anyone but himself. 

Before Chanyeol could ask Jongdae to not push it, his King already started speaking with the same gentle voice. 

“Would anything we do not help at all?” Jongdae asked considerately, kindly, nothing condescending or judgmental in his tone. “We can close our eyes and turn away if you would like.”

Baekhyun took a deep, calming breath. 

“Take comfort in the fact that Jongin and Chanyeol probably sing worse,” Jongdae joked, catching the pillow his younger brother hurled at his face with a light laugh. Chanyeol was inclined to throw another pillow but stopped when he saw that the joke and their company’s reaction to it, the light atmosphere around them, had managed to coax a smile unto Baekhyun’s lips. 

Chanyeol’s heart lightened at the sight of it.

“I doubt that,” Baekhyun said, no longer as tense as he was a few minutes ago. “I’m sure their voices are beautiful. I’m sure yours is as well.”

Jongdae’s eyes shone at that. 

“Tell you what, little Baekhyun. Sing for me and I’ll bless you with the ability to hear the songs of the Forest. To hear the tune the enchanted trees hum and the birds chirp and caw. For as long as you live. This Forest will sing to you, should you wish to hear it. I’ll sing for you, too, if you wish.”

And Chanyeol didn’t know if it was because of the blessing Jongdae offered, the opportunity to hear a Fae King sing or something else entirely but he sat there, frozen and enamored just as Baekhyun had been the first time he saw him. 

Frozen and enamored as Baekhyun started to sing. 

“What did you call Minseok back in the glen?” Baekhyun asked as they trekked their way back to the edge of the Forest, the setting sun behind them lighting their way. 

“’Idiot’? I thought that was an insult you humans use often?”

Baekhyun let out a bark of laughter, the sound once again suddenly warming Chanyeol’s heart, sending the Fae into inner flustered confusion. Chanyeol had noticed that Baekhyun became more and more comfortable with them in the glen after he had sung them a song with his soft and delicate voice he told them was usually sung as a lullaby to babes and was eternally grateful for it. 

But Chanyeol felt just a bit smug that Baekhyun still felt the most comfortable with him, enough to laugh freely like he just did. 

“That’s not what I meant and you know it,” Baekhyun laughed, dried leaves crunching beneath his boots as they continued to walk. “I meant, when I asked you who he was. You called him Jongdae’s…?”

He paused, waiting for Chanyeol to fill in the blank. 

“Ah. ‘Mate’. We believe that each living creature has one true mate in their whole lifetime. Something like a soul mate in human terms, I suppose. Mates are two beings who are literally _made_ for each other. But only a rare few ever actually meet their mates. So it’s special and treasured whenever one meets their mate.”

“How do you know if you’ve met your mate?” 

“Sometimes, for others, it only takes one look for mates to know and the bond snaps taut between them like that. For Fae, it’s usually like that because we feel things more vividly, clearly. It was like that on Jongdae’s end with Minseok when they were younger, the King still a prince.”

Chanyeol smiled at the memory of Jongdae and Minseok laughing as they told their story of how they met. 

“Jongdae took one look at Minseok and he knew right then and there that he was his mate. It took a lot more than a look to convince Minseok, who was merely a scholar studying alchemy at the time and had only stumbled upon Jongdae by mistake while he was looking for a rare herb in the Forest,” Chanyeol chuckled. “But I suppose months of courting from a charismatic and chatty Fae male swayed him in the end. He’s long-lived now, too, with Jongdae’s magic and his own skill in alchemy prolonging his natural life span. A blessing that they can spend their lives together for as long as they wished.”

Baekhyun listened to every word, amused and interested. 

“That’s amazing,” he marveled, taking the time to look at Chanyeol. Chanyeol wanted to remind him to watch where he was going to avoid falling flat on his face. “Do all Fae experience it like that?”

“Not all. Some never experience it at all. Some take longer than one look to realize that what they feel or what lay between them is actually a mating bond.”

Chanyeol glanced at Baekhyun and found him peeking at him, too and as his face flamed for reasons he didn’t know, an intriguing thought entered the back of his mind. A thought and realization that cracked through him like it did at the entrance of the glen but he pushed it away. He’d entertain it later. 

“I wonder if humans experience it, too,” Baekhyun mused as they continued. 

Chanyeol had persuaded Baekhyun to let him walk him to the edge of the Forest, where the human village ended and his home began since it was already getting dark and he didn’t want Baekhyun to lose his way. Baekhyun had graciously accepted despite insisting that he could make it home alone. So, they ended up walking farther than the other times Baekhyun had to go home after an afternoon spent with Chanyeol. 

“I wonder if humans experience it, too,” Baekhyun repeated. “The mating bond, I mean. Not as deep and precise as you the Fae do but maybe they end up marrying their mates, unaware of the bond between them.”

Chanyeol smiled at the thought.

“Maybe.”

 Twenty minutes later and they finally came to the edge of the Forest, Baekhyun leading the rest of the way during the last leg of their late afternoon trek.

“Are you sure we’re in the right place?” Chanyeol asked Baekhyun worriedly as he looked around and found nothing but a field with small hills, a castle far to the right. 

“I’m sure,” Baekhyun nodded reassuringly before pointing to somewhere in the right. “See? There’s my horse, right where I left her.”

Feeling comforted that he was leaving Baekhyun in a gentle creature’s hands, or rather hooves, Chanyeol nodded and smiled at Baekhyun in farewell. 

“See you,” Chanyeol said, not finding anything else to say and not having any courage to ask him to visit again tomorrow or the day after that or the day after that. 

Baekhyun merely grinned up at him and nodded. 

“See you, Chanyeol.”

And for two months, to Chanyeol’s utter surprise, there wouldn’t be a week wherein Baekhyun didn’t visit. 

Sometimes, they’d go for walks or sometimes they’d go for picnics or sometimes Chanyeol would bring him into the city and give him a tour of the market and all the things the Fae could offer. 

They’d spend afternoons talking about anything and everything and the more and more time that Chanyeol spent with his little human, the more he begun to wonder. 

Wonder why they were brought together. Wonder why he had found him stumbling around in the forest on his own. And wonder why there was something that tugged at him every time he saw Baekhyun approaching with a bright smile or leaving with a tired one. 

Until, one of the last hot summer days, they were walking along the edge of the river that ran across the middle of the city, eating frozen yoghurt courtesy of a Fae blessed with ice and Chanyeol didn’t have to wonder anymore. 

They were just walking and talking like any other day, used to each other’s presence now that Chanyeol felt weird when Baekhyun _wasn’t_ there, when a small bear suddenly trotted its way over to them. 

It went to about Baekhyun’s knees and when Baekhyun noticed it, he jumped away in fear and shock. 

Chanyeol burst out laughing, throwing out a hand to keep Baekhyun on his feet. 

“Calm down,” Chanyeol laughed. “It’s just Jongin.”

Jongin, in his bear form, nodded at Baekhyun before taking another step forward, lowering his head in a bow like the first time they had met. 

Baekhyun, after getting over his initial shock let out a delighted laugh that went straight to Chanyeol’s heart, that familiar feeling tugging at his gut but now it was echoed by a word in his mind that had _him_ stumbling backward in shock. 

“Is this really Jongin?” Baekhyun asked, still with that bright delight in expression, bending down to offer his hand to the Fae Prince. 

Chanyeol didn’t respond, still reeling at the realization he had, unsure of what to do now. 

‘Mate’

It echoed over and over as he continued to stare at Baekhyun as the human shook hands with Jongin the bear. 

“Impossible,” Chanyeol whispered, unsure of what to feel. It was extremely rare for Fae to meet their mates, especially when they were as young as Chanyeol and yet there he was, his heart and soul telling him that the human in front of him – the human that had stumbled into his life with his bright eyes and beautiful smile was _his._ Just as Chanyeol was Baekhyun’s.

Both bear and human looked up at him in confusion.

“Hm?” Baekhyun asked him, tilting his head to the side with a small inquiring smile. 

Mate. 

Baekhyun was _his_ mate. 

A few hours later, when he and Baekhyun were walking back to the same field Baekhyun asked to be brought every afternoon when it was time to go home, the fact and realization settling into Chanyeol’s pure heart, he couldn’t help but feel excited. 

There was his mate, just beside him. 

He had never really wondered if he’d ever meet his mate. He was _young_ , he didn’t think he needed to worry about that until he was a hundred years old, at least. But there he was, his mate. 

“You okay?” Baekhyun asked him. “You’re uncharacteristically quiet.”

Baekhyun’s voice snapped him out of his whirling thoughts. 

Later, he’d worry about it later. 

Chanyeol forced himself to shrug, easing a smile on to his face. 

“It’s nothing for you to worry about.”

“I may just be a young human but I can still handle problems, you know,” Baekhyun pouted at him. “You’re my friend, you can tell me anything as I would do you the same courtesy.”

 “Why the sudden pretty words? Everything’s fine, I promise,” Chanyeol smiled at Baekhyun as they neared the spot where Baekhyun kept his horse. 

“More than fine, even,” Chanyeol added when Baekhyun smiled back at him. 

“Promise?” 

With his mate already by his side? Everything was indeed more than fine. 

“I promise.”

Baekhyun glanced up at his hair, reaching up a bit on his tippy toes. Chanyeol bent down a bit for him, his eyes wide in mild surprise. 

“There was a leaf,” Baekhyun merely said, holding said leaf in his hand but he didn’t take his eyes off of his hair.

“Your pink hair is seriously the best thing I’ve ever seen in my life,” Baekhyun finally said, laughing a bit before looking Chanyeol in the eyes, not noticing one bit that Chanyeol’s heart was hammering in his chest. 

“And your eyes are brilliant. Red and Blue. A bit scary at first but once you get used to them, they’re actually really beautiful.”

“You’re beautiful – no, I meant,” Chanyeol stuttered, his already red face, flaming even more. He cleared his throat.

“Your _eyes._ I find your eyes beautiful as well.”

Baekhyun smiled at him and Chanyeol smiled shyly back.

Chanyeol wondered when their situations had reversed. Now, Chanyeol was the blushing, stuttering mess while Baekhyun gave him the reassuring smiles and pats on the back. 

 As they exchanged their goodbyes and Baekhyun promised to visit again tomorrow, Chanyeol couldn’t help but wish for a day where they didn’t have to say goodbye at the end of the day. 

And as he summoned his wings and started the flight back to his home in the city, he made a promise to himself for tomorrow. Tomorrow, he’d tell Baekhyun about the bond. 

Tomorrow, he’d tell his mate. 

Tomorrow came and Chanyeol sat in the middle of their meadow with wildflowers in his hands, nervous as hell but excited and in love and ready. 

But Baekhyun never arrived. 

Nor did he visit the next day. Nor the day after that. 

Until a whole week passed with Chanyeol making the flight to that meadow with a new bouquet every day only to stay there until the sunset with no Baekhyun in sight. 

A week turned into a month, and then a month turned into a year.

The next year, Chanyeol stopped coming to that meadow altogether. 

Two years after that, he’d stopped hoping he’d hear Baekhyun’s voice in the air.

Five years after that, Chanyeol had convinced himself that he’d never see the human again. 

Ten years after that last goodbye and Chanyeol had convinced himself that he’d forgotten he ever had a mate. 

** Present Day **

The Forest was calm and uneventful as Chanyeol strolled around on watch. 

What he was watching out for, he wasn’t quite sure; but news of the human Princes conducting a hunt around this area had spread quite fast during the night. Human Princes meant numerous amounts of foot soldiers and guards. 

It was rare for a huge group of humans to venture too deep into the forest; the fact that they actually were – and were armed – made the Fae and the other creatures that resided in their Forest on edge and nervous.

Chanyeol bent down a bit to feed a passing deer some nuts he had brought along with him from the city. As a passing thought, he wondered if that deer would be one of the many hunted down and killed for the humans’ dinner. His job was only to make sure that the humans didn’t see what they weren’t supposed to see. 

Like secret entrances or flying, winged fairies or glittering glowworms. 

The others: the rabbits and deer and wolves they would find would be fair game unless that creature called for Sanctuary from the Fae. 

If Chanyeol had a say in it, he’d hide every living creature here, intelligent or not – let the humans starve and find meat elsewhere. 

He petted the deer as it went on his way and Chanyeol on his. He’d been walking since early morning and it was a miracle that the nuts in his pocket hadn’t yet run out after the huge amount of animals he had passed by, animals that’d probably be hunted down in less than an hour. 

Chanyeol had caught the scent on the wind of almost a dozen horses and riders enter the Forest around 10 minutes ago, twice that number of humans on foot. 

Chanyeol snorted at the thought. 

_ Good luck finding anything to hunt with that large a company, _ he thought. 

The sound of the rush of the stream to his right filled his ears and his throat suddenly felt parched and dry. He decided to head in the direction of the stream, keeping his eyes and ears open for any lone hunters they might have sent to scout ahead. 

The stream was still so far away and Chanyeol wanted nothing more than to summon his wings and fly the rest of the way but Jongdae had given him strict orders not to do so, at least while it was still light out. 

With a sigh, Chanyeol settled for just sprinting. At least when he’d arrive, he’d feel so tired that the water would be well worth the exertion. It was faster than walking anyway.  

On a full-out sprint, it took Chanyeol less than 5 minutes to reach the stream. If he had been flying, it would have taken him less than a minute. 

When he had the stream in his sight, he slowed down to a jog, just a bit out of breath but still okay. He was really thirsty for a gulp of that water now, though. 

But a few more steps closer had him slowing down to a cautious walk, peeking through the trees that stood in his way and the water to make sure he was seeing things right. There was a beautiful white steed with its head down drinking happily from the same stream Chanyeol had been planning to do the same. 

It wouldn’t have bothered him so much if the horse didn’t have a leather saddle lined with the colors gold and maroon on its back, a sheathed sword tied to one side.

A palace horse was here but where was his rider? 

Chanyeol immediately went alert as he searched the Forest around him for any sign of the rider, now slowly approaching the stream and the lovely-looking horse. It took Chanyeol a few seconds to realize that the horse’s companion was right there beside it, half hidden by its body, patting its mane gently and comfortingly. 

He was in no way scared of a single human but for some reason he felt nervous, as if some part of him knew he wasn’t ready for what he was about to see. But there was something – something different and magical and familiar – that kept tugging him to continue walking, _to see_. 

So he walked as close as he dared, diving into the reserves of his power, avoiding the lick of flame that wanted to bloom in his palm as a small form of comfort at least. He walked straight toward a large enough tree to hide his tall stature, peeking through the sides of the trunk. He knew his pink hair was a dead giveaway against all the green but he couldn’t resist the urge to look. 

Walking on silent feet, afraid to alert the human of his presence, Chanyeol tried to find an angle where he could see what the little human looked like. Though the human didn’t seem to notice the Fae with his dull senses, the horse seemed to sniff something else in the air. 

The horse started neighing softly, pulling at the reins the human held in one hand – pulling him in the direction of the tree Chanyeol hid behind. Chanyeol wanted to run away but he couldn’t if he wanted to because he finally got a proper view of the human when the horse moved to the side.

Because what he saw froze him in place, unable to run or turn away. 

For a split second everything in Chanyeol denied it. It had been _years_ – _a whole decade_ – since the last time Chanyeol had ever had even a single whiff of him in the Forest. He couldn’t just suddenly be here.

But it was _him_ and he was…different.

He was taller now and more mature-looking, all sharp lines and precise curves where there were once full cheeks and pouty lips. He stood with an air of confidence and sureness now, none of the clumsy, jittery nervousness he used to have. But he was as handsome as ever, even more so if that was possible. He had been beautiful as a child but as a _man_ he was devastatingly gorgeous. 

He looked different, _even smelled different,_ but the way Chanyeol felt whenever he looked at Baekhyun ten years ago was exactly the same – the same tug in his gut, the same rush of attraction through his veins, muddling his every thought and move. 

Chanyeol let out the breath he had been holding as he watched Baekhyun try to control his agitated horse, reaching out with a hand to stroke the horse’s snout. 

“Calm down, boy. What is it?” 

The unfamiliar sound of his voice made Chanyeol want to sink to the ground on his knees because even though it sounded different and deeper than before, it was still distinctly his. It left Chanyeol wondering if he still loved singing the way he used to when they were younger. 

Chanyeol couldn’t help it. He stepped out from behind the towering tree, still not believing his eyes. 

The horse had stopped struggling to warn its companion, calming down when it realized that Chanyeol meant no harm. Maybe it knew that Chanyeol was a being that wouldn’t ever hurt an animal but Chanyeol couldn’t give a single damn at the moment because as the horse turned to stare at him, so did Baekhyun. 

And as their gazes met after years and years of Chanyeol searching for those same brown eyes, the same crack that resounded throughout his soul that first time he had taken Baekhyun to meet his King, rushed through him again and Chanyeol _knew_ that it was indeed Baekhyun who was standing in front of him. 

So there they were, meters apart, a horse between them, staring at each other in recognition and shock. 

Baekhyun was the first one to break the silence. 

“Chanyeol,” he said breathed out in disbelief, his eyes flying everywhere on Chanyeol, his pink hair, his mismatched eyes, his now taller self. 

Chanyeol did the same, drinking in Baekhyun for fear that he might disappear again, his brown hair, those soft brown eyes that hadn’t changed despite age and the expensive-looking clothes on his back. 

Baekhyun took a hesitant step forward, the horse moving out his way as if it knew better than to interrupt.

“I don’t believe it,” Baekhyun said in the same tone, barely above a whisper, but Chanyeol still couldn’t bring himself to speak. 

He just stared and stared at the boy, now a man, he had fallen in love with and had disappeared without a trace all those years ago. 

“It’s me. Baekhyun.” 

As the human spoke, he took slow and short steps closer to Chanyeol but he was still too far away to touch and Chanyeol didn’t know if that was a good or bad thing. 

Inhaling sharply, he finally built up enough of his sanity to say something. 

“Baek –“

“Your Highness!”

Chanyeol whipped his head in the direction of the call, cutting himself off from saying a name he hadn’t said in _years_. 

“Your Highness! Where are you?”

He had grown used to hearing that title but not because of his own position but because of Jongin’s.

But his best friend was back at the castle at the top of the hill in their city, in other words, nowhere near them at that moment. So that meant – 

Chanyeol turned back to Baekhyun who now looked a bit troubled by the man shouting in the distance but his attention was still fully on Chanyeol. 

Baekhyun’s clothes seem to now sink into Chanyeol’s recognition. The rich silk his clothes were made off, the expensive-looking boots, the horse and the sword by its side, with the pommel shaped into that of a lion.

That meant Baekhyun was royalty. A human Prince. 

“Your Highness!” the same voice called out, nearer now. 

Chanyeol blinked and took a step back, his Fae senses reminding him to run now, farther away from the center of the forest, just in case they decided to follow. He had a job to do and that was to keep the humans from discovering something they shouldn’t.

And that’s what he was going to do.

Baekhyun, noticing the change in Chanyeol’s expression and movement, raised both hands, palms open toward Chanyeol, stepping forward, his mouth opening to say, 

“Wait!”

But Chanyeol was already running back the way he had gone through, away from the middle of the Forest and any other entrances to the city, (though he was sure Baekhyun remembered the entrance behind the waterfalls).

With a startled shout, Chanyeol knew Baekhyun had sprinted back to his horse to try and follow. 

Even with their horses, they would never catch up with him and his supernatural speed. He knew this forest like the back of his broad hand. They didn’t have a single chance in Hell of catching him.

And Chanyeol ran and ran, urging his feet to do what his heart was having trouble doing, leaving Baekhyun behind. 

Chanyeol ran to the end of the Forest, staying behind the line of trees, skirting the small field that lay between the right side of the castle and where he stood. There were a few more knights waiting on the grassy grounds, sitting on logs and wooden chairs they must have brought for the Lords. 

Truly a large-scale event for their human kingdom, then, if there was these many people for a single hunt. 

From the other side of the clearing, Chanyeolk watched as Baekhyun, still atop his horse, and his host emerge from the trees. Baekhyun looked tired and defeated and Chanyeol couldn’t help but feel a bit guilty. He had been leading them in circles for an hour or more before he decided to just lead them back to their camp, finally tired. 

But while he was distracting the human Prince, he hoped the other Fae on watch had taken care of the other entrances. He had been focused on only a single group when he had been in charge of keeping an eye on all of them. 

Perhaps he had _too_ much fun with letting Baekhyun chase him all around the place. 

Again, as he watched as Baekhyun talk to Lords and knights, Chanyeol was filled with the urge to go and approach him and have a nice, long chat. 

Because Chanyeol had missed him. 

Dearly. 

But he knew that if he walked out there now, with his pointed ears, his mismatched eyes and his pink hair and the grace with which he carried himself, nothing human at all in his expression, they’d train all their weapons him. And he wasn’t sure that even Baekhyun could stop them from killing him then and there.

He had to find a different way to speak with the Prince. 

For the mean time he studied the gathering of humans, taking in as much information as he could. From where he was standing, he could see Baekhyun and only a few more actually mounted on horses. He assumed they were the people of importance though no one in that clearing wore similar clothes similar to Baekhyun’s despite bearing his crest and colors.

Chanyeol distinctly remembered Baekhyun having two siblings, one older and one younger. Junmyeon and Sehun. 

Baekhyun had told Chanyeol all about them. The fact that they were all royalty must have slipped his mind. 

He wondered if the boy beside Baekhyun, seated on a horse like the Prince was, was one of his siblings. He had a stern expression on his face but his wide eyes seemed capable to express everything he wanted to say with just one look. He rode close to Baekhyun but the design and cut of his clothing was way too different from Baekhyun’s.

Not a Prince then. 

While searching through the clearing with his eyes, he kept his heightened hearing trailed on Baekhyun’s voice. Chanyeol didn’t know what to feel about the fact that he could pick out Baekhyun’s voice even from a crowd as big as this one. 

“Call the others back, we’re going home,” he heard Baekhyun say. “We’ve caught enough for one day.”

Indeed there seemed to be a cart full of deer, rabbits and other fresh game in one corner of the meadow. 

There was a small company of knights under a banner different from the red and gold, too. This one was green with what seemed to be a unicorn on its bearing. 

“But, Your Highness, we’ve only just begun the hunt,” a knight responded but shut up quickly enough that Chanyeol had to glance back at them curiously, to see why the man had suddenly gone quiet. 

Chanyeol glanced back only to see nothing of the Baekhyun he had come to know during that one summer, ten years ago. This Baekhyun glowered at the interrupting knight so sharply that it turned his features cold and detached.

The knight didn’t say anything after that – instead he rushed off probably to follow his prince’s orders. 

“Might as well,” Baekhyun’s companion said. “Apparently, Prince Yixing isn’t a fan of hunting and has been deliberately missing his shots at the deer.”

Baekhyun chuckled. 

“Well, considering that he’s the best archer in his kingdom, I’d say he probably doesn’t like hurting animals,” Baekhyun shrugged. “That’s alright, though. I don’t enjoy it either.”

So, there was a prince visiting from another kingdom. That would explain the grandeur of a single hunt. 

Showing off or merely an activity to bond, Chanyeol wondered. 

With the company of humans starting to pack up at their prince’s orders, Chanyeol made to leave but something kept holding him back, making him want to take a glance again. 

Baekhyun still sat there on his mount, smiling gently now as his bright-eyed companion told him something about Sehun. His younger brother, Chanyeol remembered. 

Before he left, Chanyeol took a few more minutes to watch as Baekhyun raised a hand. 

He didn’t need his enhanced Fae hearing to hear as Baekhyun shouted his brother’s name, calling the dark-haired rider that had just emerged from the Forest, riding a beautiful horse. 

“Sehun!” Baekhyun called and most of the knights turned at the announcement of the arrival of another of their Princes. They inclined their heads in a bow as the youngest Prince passed by where they stood. 

The newly-arrived prince was all smiles, bright and young and tall. Incredibly handsome, too. 

“Heard you were cutting the hunt short,” Sehun grinned at his older brother. “Something in the Forest scare you off?”

Chanyeol froze where he stood but Baekhyun only smirked at his brother and shook his head. 

“No, it’s time to go home. Junmyeon might be missing us.”

A snort from the younger prince. 

“Prince Yixing seems to be missing him, too,” Sehun snickered, earning him a light swat on the arm from Baekhyun’s companion Chanyeol hadn’t learned the name of yet. 

“What?” Sehun laughed, rubbing the area that had been hit gently. “It’s true. Don’t tell me you didn’t notice it.”

“Prince Yixing came here for Peace Treaty talks,” their wide-eyed companion merely said. 

“I’d say he’s here for more than ‘peace’.”

This time even Baekhyun chuckled, shaking his head, before looking around the field. 

“Where _is_ His Royal Highness?”

“On his way out of the Forest. Saw him petting a doe as I was riding out,” Sehun informed them. 

“Alright,” Baekhyun nodded. “Tell everyone to pack up. We leave as soon as we’re ready.”

With that, Baekhyun pulled on the reins of his horse, making it look the other way, away from the Forest. But before he began riding away, he took another few minutes to gaze at the edge of the Forest, moving his eyes from one end to the other, searching for something. Or someone. 

Chanyeol pressed himself closer to the tree, praying that the leaves hid his pink hair from the prince’s eyes. 

He could’ve sworn there was a hint of longing in those searching eyes but it was gone before Chanyeol could confirm. With one final sweep of his gaze at the Forest, Baekhyun finally began riding away, his brother and his companion with him. 

Chanyeol decided it was time for him to go home as well, forcing himself to look away from Baekhyun’s back and walk off, making sure to keep to the cover of the trees, knowing that one more prince still lurked in the Forest. 

“I saw something else in there as well, Baekhyun,” Chanyeol heard Sehun say despite the distance. 

“What?”

A pause as Chanyeol strained to hear more even as he walked away. 

“Later,” Sehun seemed to decide. “I’ll tell you later when we’re back at the castle.”

Chanyeol didn’t hear Baekhyun reply and that was that. 

On his way back to Elyxion, he ran into the last person he thought he would. 

“Jongin?” Chanyeol exclaimed. “What are you doing out here?” 

Chanyeol had caught him at the edge of the stream, dressed in a gray shirt and brown pants, looking normal enough but with the silver hair, silver eyes and pointed ears, he looked as normal as a campfire underwater. 

“Looking for you,” Jongin said simply from where he was crouched down, running his hand through the water idly, deep in thought. 

“Well, I wasn’t swimming with the fish if that was what you were wondering.”

Jongin stuck a tongue out at him. 

“I know. I got lost on my way to find you so I figured I’d just stay put and let you find me.”

Chanyeol let out a sigh and urged Jongin to stand up, grasping his shoulder gently. 

“You didn’t let anyone see you, did you?” 

Jongin shook his head but there was a smile on his lips as he did. Chanyeol didn’t question it as they continued walking home. 

“I saw Baekhyun today.”

Jongdae spit his tea all over Minseok’s meticulously clean shirt. 

With a sigh and a wave of Minseok’s hand over his body, the spots disappeared as Jongdae coughed, apologized and wiped his mouth. 

“Why didn’t you mention it while we were walking home?” Jongin gawked at him as how Minseok and Jongdae now did. 

“Because I didn’t want to tell the same story twice,” Chanyeol pouted. “And besides, it’s nothing like something’s going to come out of that meeting. He didn’t come back for me ten years ago. He isn’t going to come for me now.”

It was late afternoon and they were having tea in the King’s Garden which was on the balcony outside the King’s private quarters as they usually did. They sat on iron chairs and dined on tarts, pies, muffins and other sweets on a round iron table with the scent of blooming flowers and the faint sound of the fountain at their backs. 

It was almost an everyday activity for the four of them and Chanyeol found it to be one of the most enjoyable parts of his day. 

“Well, that just means you have to go to him,” Jongdae said excitedly, leaning forward on his arms, no crown donning his blonde hair today. “He’s your mate. You can’t let him go just like that again.”

He had broken and told them after the first year that Baekhyun had stopped visiting when he could no longer take their repeated questions of why he kept looking for the little human. The moment he had told them he was his mate, Jongdae had wanted to send out a search for Baekhyun but Chanyeol quickly waved it off.

If Baekhyun didn’t want to come back, Chanyeol wasn’t going to come dragging him back and forcing the bond on him. If Baekhyun was ever going to accept their mating bond, it was going to be willingly or not at all. 

“At least we know he’s alive,” Minseok smiled at Chanyeol reassuringly, resting a hand on his shoulder. “Alive and safe.”

“And a prince,” Chanyeol mumbled. 

“I met a prince today, too. He was as good-looking as any Fae royal,” Jongin said, smiling to himself as Chanyeol gaped at him disbelievingly. 

“You _told_ me you didn’t let anyone see you!”

“He promised not to tell anyone he saw me!”

“A prince? Was his name Sehun?” Chanyeol remembered how the younger prince had wanted to tell his brother that he had seen something in the Forest. 

“We didn’t exchange names,” Jongin said sheepishly. 

“Humans have known we existed for decades anyway,” Jongdae shrugged. “It’s not a big deal. Just as long as both of you came back in one piece, it’s alright.”

Chanyeol gave Jongin a look that said ‘This conversation isn’t over’, his eyes narrowing at his best friend. Jongin only stuck out his tongue and sent him a grin to which Chanyeol just rolled his eyes. 

“Now,” the King began again as he buttered his toast. “What are we going to do about you and Baekhyun?”

“There’s nothing _to_ do. We’ll just leave it as is.”

Chanyeol didn’t know what was making him say these things but he was. Despite the longing and sorrow nestled into his heart after seeing Baekhyun again a decade later, there was fear mixed in as well. Fear that Baekhyun might reject him again – leave him again. 

“You can’t mean that,” Minseok frowned. “He’s your mate.”

“It’s not like I don’t want to tell him that but,” Chanyeol paused. 

“But?”

“What if he already has someone else. What if he already loves someone else, and mating bond or no, he turns it away, turns me away? I wouldn’t be able to handle it.”

“He doesn’t,” Jongin said. “That prince told me that none of their kingdom’s princes were married yet, despite their advisors encouraging them to find princesses to marry for alliances and connections. They’ve all claimed that they want to marry for love,”

“As they should,” Jongdae nodded sagely.

“The brothers made promises between themselves that they’d dedicate their lives to their crowns but they’d never force each other to marry when they didn’t want to. They’ve already been ridden of other choices in their lives, they wanted each other to at least have that,” Jongin continued.

Chanyeol, Jongdae and Minseok stared at him.

“How long were you there talking?” Chanyeol looked at him weirdly.

Jongin shrugged, plopping a green macaroon in his mouth. 

Minseok clapped his hands once. 

“There you have it,” he grinned. “We know that Baekhyun isn’t in love yet. We can throw you back into the mix.”

“I’m not sure how the humans react when they see a 6-foot tall, pink-haired, red _and_ blue-eyed, pointy-eared Fae male walking down their village streets, sweetheart,” Jongdae smiled at his mate. 

“You could turn me human,” Chanyeol blinked as the thought came to him before he whirled around to look at Minseok by his side. “ _You_ could turn me human.”

Everyone around the table paused and stared at him.

“But Chanyeol, turning you human, you’d be giving up _a lot_ of stuff,” Jongin said sadly. “Too much.”

“Minseok did the opposite for Jongdae,” Chanyeol argued, glancing at his two friends. “You gave up being human, not completely, yeah – but still – to be with him. You’d do the same for him, right, Jongdae?”

“Of course,” Jongdae said firmly, without hesitation.

“Still, Yeol. We made that decision _after_ we had _both_ accepted the bond. In your case, Baekhyun doesn’t even know the bond exists. I,” Jongdae paused and Chanyeol knew it was because he was looking for words that wouldn’t hurt his feelings. “I just don’t want you to make such a big decision when you don’t know what’s going to come out of it. Not yet anyway.”

They debated about it for a few more minutes, Jongin and Jongdae offering other possibilities and scenarios to sway Chanyeol, Minseok staying silent by Chanyeol’s side, deep in thought. 

“I could make it work,” Minseok said breaking his silence. “We could make it work but it would be difficult and there are a lot of variables to consider. Just give me time to prepare.”

Chanyeol looked at Minseok pleadingly before nodding. 

“Take all the time you need. Just maybe not, you know, another ten years.”

That made everyone around the table crack a smile before laughing.

“I hope you know what you’re doing,” Jongdae said, a smile still in his face but worry laced in his tone.

“Trust me,” Minseok smiled at Chanyeol comfortingly. “We can do this.”

A week later, Chanyeol stood in front of Minseok’s cottage, located in the Sanctuary somewhere deep in the Forest, playing with the squirrels that scurried around his feet. Squirrels always seemed to like Minseok which was probably why Chanyeol would find a dozen or more of them around the wizard’s house every time he visited. 

Minseok’s cottage was cozy and warm and _clean_. It’s where he does most of his potions and spells and sometimes, in disguise, does business for the people that find him for a heavy price. But, he mostly lives in the castle with all of them, always hovering around Jongdae and taking care of him. 

Jongin, in bear form, padded over to him. He was bigger now compared to ten years ago and shaggier because his hair was long as of the moment. His head was up to Chanyeol’s elbow which may seem intimidating to the humans but, honestly, it made him cuddlier. 

There were nights where they would just lounge in one of the meadows in the Sanctuary, Jongin in this form and Chanyeol would lean back onto his warmth as they enjoyed the warm summer breeze. 

With a flash of light, Jongin in his Fae form was standing by his side, almost as tall as him and staggeringly gorgeous in princely regalia he only wore when he felt like it, just as Minseok came striding out of his cottage, wearing that blue cloak of his that he always wore when he needed to perform one of his spells. 

“Okay, here’s what we can do, we – What are you doing here, Jongin?” Minseok glanced up from his book to look at the Fae prince. 

“I’m not here to be turned into a human, too, if that’s what you’re wondering. Just thought I’d give my best friend some moral support as he goes through this.”

“You just don’t want to attend court formalities, don’t you,” Chanyeol threw him a pointed look. 

Jongin just grinned. 

Minseok rolled his eyes good-naturedly before turning back to his book. 

“I _could_ turn you human, Yeol, but it won’t be permanent. Not yet, at least. It would only turn you partly human until the requirements are completely fulfilled. And as you go about fulfilling it, you gradually become more and more human until you finally are. Mortal and all.”

“What do you mean ‘partly human’?” Chanyeol frowned. 

“You’d appear human but your magic will still be there at the beginning, only a limited amount, though, nothing to fancy.”

“Not like it was ever actually fancy,” Jongin coughed which earned him an elbow to the ribs from Chanyeol. 

Chanyeol appreciated his friend’s attempt at humor, likely noticing how nervous Chanyeol was right now. Not having access to his magic was something Chanyeol had expected but he hasn’t entirely accepted that fact yet. 

“What’s the requirement I’d have to fulfill?” 

“You have to make Prince Baekhyun fall in love with you completely and willingly for you to become human.”

That made Chanyeol’s heart pause in his chest. 

“Are you serious?” Jongin laughed lightly, walking to Minseok’s side to read over his shoulder. “The spell actually works like that?”

Minseok nodded, not taking his eyes off of Chanyeol’s worried gaze. 

“See? It works perfectly with your situation. You’d be a human as you court him and make him fall in love with you but if he _doesn’t_ – and I’m not saying, he won’t, Chanyeol, he’d be stupid not to fall in love with you – you can still go back to being Fae.”

“And do what?” Chanyeol sulked. “I’d go back to being immortal knowing that my mate never loved me and is going to die in a few decades.”

Jongin and Minseok looked at him sadly, both coming over to his side to each put a hand on his shoulders.

“That’s why we’re going to make him fall in love with you,” Jongin said determinedly. 

That night, when all the guests had gone to their rooms or back to their homes, the four of them gathered in the King’s Garden, Jongdae included. 

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Jongdae asked him again. Possibly for the fifth time just that night. 

“Yes,” Chanyeol answered, looking Minseok straight in the eye. “I’m sure.”

“We’ll keep an eye on you, don’t worry,” Jongin said, clasping a hand comfortingly on Chanyeol’s shoulder. 

Chanyeol had to snort. 

“As what? A bear?” 

“I’ll figure something out,” Jongin stuck his tongue out at him. “You, on the other hand? Do you know what you’re going to do once you get to the human village? It’s not like you can just waltz into their castle.”

“He can if he says he’s a messenger from a kingdom from far away,” Jongdae said, walking closer now and peering at him worriedly. “We can get him a fancy horse and even fancier clothes. The finery could be enough to get him an audience with the kingdom. You do know how to get to the castle, at least?”

“ _I know how to ask for directions._ Look, you guys don’t have to worry so much,” Chanyeol said, attempting to flash a winning smile. “I’m not a child anymore. I know how to go about dealing with humans. This is going to be a piece of cake.”

“Winning the prince’s heart might prove to be the hardest task in this case,” Minseok said. “But I’m sure you can do it, Yeol.”

“Who doesn’t like a challenge,” Chanyeol shrugged but a little doubt nipped at the edge of his heart, reminding him of the feeling of emptiness he had when he concluded that he might never see Baekhyun again all those years ago. 

He was given a second chance, he wasn’t about to throw it away just like that. Even if, some part of him, while he had been wondering his forest this past week, had been going around looking for Baekhyun, hoping that after they had seen each other that day he’d come back to look for him. 

He didn’t and, now, it was in Chanyeol’s hands to do something about it. Again. 

Jongin and Jongdae hovered around them as Minseok talked him through the process. 

“Tonight, you’re just going to drink this potion I brewed,” Minseok pointed to the small glass of silver liquid he had set down on their table, the liquid glinting in the moonlight. “It’s going to lower your magical abilities enough to turn your features mortal. That means round ears, rounder and warmer facial features, brown eyes.”

Chanyeol nodded absentmindedly. 

“Wait, what about my hair?”

Minseok gnawed on his bottom lip as he reached out to run his hands through Chanyeol’s pink, puffy hair.

“I don’t know what effect it’ll have on your hair. We’ll just have to wait and see, I guess.”

“It isn’t going to make it fall off, is it? If it does, I’m going to have a laughing fit,” Jongin snickered. Chanyeol glared at him over a shoulder but remained silent. It _was_ a reasonable fear. 

“No, I don’t think it’ll do that,” Minseok laughed. “Maybe it’ll change its color a bit to a more _human_ one.”

“Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go,” Chanyeol rolled his shoulders back, mentally prepping himself for what was about to come and what he was about to do. 

“Remember, all you have to do tonight is to drink the potion, Chanyeol,” Jongdae said as Minseok went over to retrieve the glass from the table. “We’ll talk about the rest tomorrow morning. Things like money and lodging, alright?”

“I’m not going to run off into the night as soon as I’m turned into a human, if that’s what you’re so worried about,” Chanyeol laughed. 

Jongdae reached out to pinch his cheeks just as Minseok came over to his side and handed him the potion.

“I know that. I’m just worried. You’re like a little brother to me. Your parents left you in my care and I love you like you’re my own flesh and blood and I’m just worried.”

Jongin smiled his agreement from behind Jongdae as they met each other’s gazes. 

Chanyeol, who was taller than Jongdae, found it easy to pat his King’s head soothingly. 

“I know that,” Chanyeol said, smiling lovingly at Jongdae “And I’m going to do my best to be careful so you won’t have anything to worry about. I’ll come back to the Forest every afternoon and send a message with an eagle on the days I can’t. I won’t be gone for long, you know.”

When Jongdae finally stepped away, to his brother’s side, with a nod, Minseok handed him the potion.

“Drink it all in one go,” he said. 

“It isn’t going to taste disgusting, is it?”

“I wouldn’t know,” Minseok chuckled, making Jongin and Jongdae laugh from behind him. 

“Here goes nothing, I guess.”

 And with a tilt of his head backward, he downed the drink in one gulp. It tasted like sparkling water, only more sparkle and less water. It made him scrunch his nose. 

When every single drop was down his throat, he let his hand drop to his side and surveyed everything around him, feeling around himself if anything started feeling different than normal. 

It didn’t. 

“I wasn’t expecting a huge flash of light or anything but is it just me or does Chanyeol look the same,” Jongin said, stepping forward to peer at him closer. As did Minseok and Jongdae, now holding hands.

“Try using your powers,” Jongdae suggested.

Chanyeol lifted the hand that wasn’t still holding the small glass and summoned a ball of fire on his palm with half a thought, bathing their little garden in a red-orange hue.

“It’s all still there,” Chanyeol mumbled, moving his hand this way and that to study if the fire was any different from usual. 

Minseok hummed, looking confused. 

“Maybe you just need to sleep on it. Let the potion spread along your system for a night. If everything’s still the same come morning, I’ll try to make you a bigger dose. Maybe I miscalculated your size to the dosage I was supposed to give you.”

“You? Miscalculate? Such a thing is unheard of,” Jongdae joked as he placed a peck on his mate’s cheek. “I’m sure Chanyeol’s body just needs some time to adjust to the potion in its system. Let’s all just call it a night and go to sleep. It’s getting late.”

With that, Jongdae herded him and Jongin out of their private quarters and into the hallway, Jongin leading the way to their rooms on the other side of the castle, up one of the towers as Chanyeol patted himself all over, trying to see if he was any different. But he was sure his senses were still above those of a normal human’s and he was sure if he ran now, it would still be at an unnatural speed. 

Chanyeol sighed. 

Hopefully tomorrow, he’d be different.

“You know,” Jongin began, slowing down a bit to walk beside Chanyeol. “I don’t think Minseok and Jongdae are ‘just going to sleep’ tonight.”

Chanyeol choked out a laugh, swatting Jongin on the arm, the sound reverberating across the hallways. 

“That’s none of our business.”

“I know. Just wanted to get that frown off of your face.”

“Aw,” Chanyeol cooed, throwing a hand over Jongin’s shoulders. “You do care about me.”

Chanyeol woke up feeling light-headed and a bit off-kilter, wondering if he had gotten sick. 

Groaning, he rolled around on his bed, trying to block of the bright sunlight coming from his window with his arm. Weird, he never seemed to hate the shine of the sun on his face before. 

“Your hair,” someone suddenly said from beside him, making him almost jump out of skin, jolting the bed.

Jongin. 

He opened his eyes to find Jongin sitting on the stool he usually kept by the windows, scooted so close to his bed that Jongin’s knees were touching his sheets. 

Again, weird. Usually, he’d know – _he’d sense_ – Jongin in his room enough not to be startled. 

Their gazes met and Jongin’s silver-gray eyes widened in delight and shock. 

“Your eyes! They’re brown!” He exclaimed, leaning closer, like last night, to take a look. 

“What?!”

Chanyeol sat up so quickly, they bumped foreheads, both flying apart with a shout of pain. 

Pain from that collision and a different type of headache slashed through Chanyeol’s temple, making him rub it with the pads of his fingers in an attempt to soothe some of it away. 

“Wah,” Jongin made a whooshing sound in surprise, reaching with a hand to play with Chanyeol’s hair between his fingers. “It’s red.”

“It’s what?” Chanyeol dropped his hands from his temples to instead reach for some strands of his usually pink hair that fell into his forehead as bangs. He stretched it out as much as I could, a few shorter strands dropping back to the middle of his eyes but –  

It was darker now, not the light pink it usually was with the mix of lighter purples and blues when the sun hit it at the right angle. It was red, a dark very dark red that bordered on being black. A shade he wouldn’t have wanted for himself if he were ever given the chance to change it. 

He threw the sheets off of himself, stumbling to his washroom, feeling like a newborn fawn right to the mirror stuck to the wall there, Jongin following closely behind him. 

“Your ears aren’t pointed anymore and you look so… so _normal_. It’s eerie,” Jongin marveled before they even reached the mirror. 

When they did, Chanyeol braced his hands on the wash basin, staring at himself in shock in the mirror. 

The first thing he noticed was his no longer two-toned eyes. Now they were a dull, muddy brown. Not nearly as beautiful as Baekhyun’s light brown hued eyes. 

Next, was, _indeed_ , his dark red hair color, still outlandish by human terms but not as eye-catching as the bubbly pink hair he used to have. 

Then his round ears, his full cheeks, his less – _glowy –_ complexion. 

He brought his hands up to his face, lightly poking and prodding at areas. 

“You’re still more handsome than most mortals if that’s what you’re so worried about.”

“That’s not what I’m worrying about,” Chanyeol said softly, trailing off as he studied himself further in the mirror. With a blink he realized that everything was much quieter than it usually was. He couldn’t hear the murmur of the waking castle beneath him. Even as he strained his ears, he could only hear barely what was beyond their bedroom hallways. 

He stepped away from the mirror and tried to summon a palm of fire and what would usually take him just a millisecond of concentration had him focusing deeply to summon. First, a small lick of fire on the tip of his finger like a candle then on each of his five fingers and then with a twist of his wrist, moved those small flames to his palm. 

He sighed through his nose at the exertion cost at just that small display. 

“It’s like having the power of a child.”

“Maybe even less,” Jongin mused with a wry smile but that smile faltered when Chanyeol gave him a flat look. 

“It’s not like humans even _have_ magic, Yeol,” Jongin instead said, hopping off the edge of the tub. “Having any more than that would only make you too noticeable.”

Taking a deep breath, Chanyeol nodded, more to himself than to Jongin. 

“You’re right,” Chanyeol muttered, running his hands through his now red hair, still not quite believing all of it.

“You’re right,” he repeated. 

With a final deep breath, he put his hands on his hips and whirled around to look at his friend, more beautiful now that he was seeing him through mortal eyes. 

(In the back of his mind, Chanyeol wondered if Baekhyun had thought him beautiful, too, when they were barely more than children.)

“Now, get out, I have to get ready.”

Standing in the throne room, empty save for a few guards and the four of them, Minseok looked him up and down, amazed at both himself and the potion he had made. 

“I can’t believe I actually brewed it perfectly,” Minseok said with a little incredulous laugh. 

“I knew you did,” Jongdae said, cuddling up to Minseok’s side before stepping up to study Chanyeol more. “And you said your magic is truly limited.”

“Yeah,” Chanyeol said, wiggling his fingers toward Jongdae to show the small flames on the tips of his fingers. 

“Okay, the next thing is for me to link that spell to your mating bond. The more Baekhyun recognizes it – or in this case – the more he falls in love with you, the more the spell will take effect until he fully accepts the bond and you become completely human with him.”

Something in Jongdae’s eyes shuttered at that. It didn’t escape Chanyeol’s notice.

Before he let Minseok do the spell on him, his wand already out, he glanced at Jongdae who was biting his lip from behind his own mate. Jongin was silent as he sat on the steps that lead to the throne behind them.

“What is it?” Chanyeol asked them. “Are you still worried?”

“No, we’re just,” Jongdae began, exchanging glances with his brother. “I guess, we’re just a bit sad that we won’t be able to spend as much time as we thought with you. You’d live a mortal lifespan.”

“But I’d get to spend it with him.”

The words were out of his mouth before he had even processed them. It was true. He didn’t care that much that he wasn’t going to live out hundreds of years like he had originally thought when he was younger. There were more creatures in their world that lived with a time limit than those without and if they could do it, then Chanyeol could do so too. 

Jongdae gave him a sad smile and Jongin grinned. 

“I’ll still spend these days with you anyway. Baekhyun or not. I’d visit as much as I can. We’d live in both worlds.”

“I do hope everything goes well, Chanyeol,” Jongdae said. “It would be interesting to watch you grow as a human with your mate by your side. “

“Why are we getting all sappy anyway,” Jongin said, standing up from where he was seated, laughing a bit. “It’s not like Baekhyun’s in love with him already.”

“Thank you for the vote of confidence,” Chanyeol glared at him playfully, masking his nervousness about how things with Baekhyun would go. 

“Let’s take it one step at a time, alright?” Minseok interjected, moving Chanyeol so they faced each other, wand up and ready. “Focus on the bond and picture Baekhyun in your mind.”

That wasn’t hard. He’d been dreaming about him for 10 years. He was sure the image was already glued to the back of his eyelids. 

He let out a breath. 

“Okay.”

An hour later, on top of a white, pristine mare that Jongdae had personally asked to escort Chanyeol to the palace, the newly turned human was off with a few sniffs from his King and Minseok as they waved him off.

Jongin, on the other hand, used his shape-shifting abilities to turn into a dog. Small enough to be put into a pack on Chanyeol’s lap, his head poking out.

“He said he wanted to come along with you for a few days. Just to make sure nothing happens to you while you settle in,” Minseok said ten minutes ago as he handed him the bag where Jongin, in dog form, poked his head out, his floppy ears drooped. 

Chanyeol, already settling on the horse, hefted puppy-Jongin up eye-level. 

“You just want to go visit the human world, don’t you?” Chanyeol had accused, narrowing his eyes at his friend.

Puppy-Jongin merely let out a bark and gave him what seemed like a grin (it was hard to tell in puppy form). 

And with that, Chanyeol was off to the nearest village. 

The horse, named Farasha, seemed to know where she was going as she trotted through the Forest, leaving Chanyeol with nothing to do but watch the forest around him as it went about its life, unaware that it was missing one Fae. 

Some of the animals that recognized him from his wanderings in the past, peered at him from behind their bushes, most likely wondering why he was slightly different from usual. A part of Chanyeol wondered if he should say goodbye to them as well but he didn’t. 

He snorted at his own melodrama. It wasn’t like he was leaving for good. 

Whether or not all goes well with Baekhyun, he’d be going back to this place anyway. 

He looked down at where Jongin was already taking a nap inside the pack. 

“How am I supposed to talk to you when you’re in that form?”

Jongin’s voice entered his mind as the dog on his lap opened an eye.

_ You forget I can do this. _

Chanyeol winced.

Jongin and Jongdae and everyone in their family had telepathy and could project that power to anyone near them. But that ability was ever rarely used because they saw it as an invasion of a person’s privacy, so they were taught from a very young age not to use it unless it was truly necessary. 

_ Don’t go reading my mind, Jongin. _

Jongin did what Chanyeol assumed was the dog equivalent of a snort and closed his eyes again, settling himself deeper in the pack, getting ready for a nap. 

_ As if I’d ever see anything interesting here,  _ Jongin said and then he was gone. 

Riding through the mortal city made Chanyeol jitter with anxiety.

Every time someone looked up at him on his horse, he had the urge to duck and hide, scared they’d realize he wasn’t exactly a human like them.

Jongin just looked at everything with wide eyes, tongue out in excitement, whipping his furry head this way and that. 

But everyone around just went about their lives and saw what Chanyeol had wanted them to see, a messenger (and his puppy) from another kingdom on his way to see the king. 

If they had any qualms about his dark red hair, they didn’t show. They merely squinted their eyes at him and then looked away, as if he truly were one of them. 

After about 15 minutes of that inner panic, he started calming down and letting himself admire the city. There were storefronts with half of their seats inside and half outside, clothing and armor shops with their products displayed beside the glass windows and bakeries with the smell of fresh baked bread wafting through the streets in the early morning. But while his own city had brightly colored walls and rooftops and the rushing river snaking through the middle and through some of the pathways, this city was mostly gray cobblestones and rust red rooftops. Only few shops seemed to bleed color and it made them stand out well from the others.

Chanyeol didn’t know why he half-expected everything to be different but there was almost no difference at all from Fae livelihood except for maybe the presence of magic everywhere he looked. Even his body seemed to be no different from the mortals now save for his slightly heightened senses and the nearly non-existent power in his veins. 

Farasha neighed softly as if calling Chanyeol’s name, directing his focus back to where he was and what exactly he was doing. 

_ The horse is saying that we’re almost there and that the guards might ask for identification _ , Jongin said into his mind.

_ She said that? Like exactly that?  _ Chanyeol looked at Jongin disbelievingly.

_ Well, there was a mention of apples but I decided to omit that.  _

Chanyeol let out a chuckle and once more raised his head to face to front to see that they were indeed nearing the castle, only a bridge and a set of bronze gates to cross. The castle towered over the town despite being built away from the city itself and a moat separating it. 

Despite the threatening presence of the stone walls around the cream-colored towers and green rooftops, from where Chanyeol was across the bridge, the castle seemed to be open and welcoming – if all those who crossed the bridge toward and away were any indication. 

Chanyeol held Farasha’s reins, both to lead them toward the guardhouse at the end of the bridge and to steady himself after his heart had started thundering in his chest and his hands had started to get clammy. 

_ Calm down, Yeol. _

Chanyeol heard Jongin say into his head and he nodded as a reply, trying to calm himself as they neared the armed guards that stood only a few more meters away. 

As they got closer, Chanyeol could see the guard opening his mouth to say something. He felt Jongin put a paw on his hand, a comforting gesture, and a rush of gratitude flooded away most of his nervousness.

“What is the purpose of your visit?” The guard frowned at Farasha, looking pristine and expensive with her white coat despite the half a day journey from his city to here. After frowning at the horse, the guard looked up to Chanyeol only to frown at him as well. 

“I’m –,” Chanyeol cleared his throat, his voice catching. 

He tried again.

“I’m a messenger from the kingdom of Elyxion.”

Better not to lie about these things, Jongdae had suggested. Elyxion was a kingdom most had heard of but never actually knew who and what dwelled there. 

A look of surprise crossed the guard’s face. His eyes seemed to clear, noticing Chanyeol’s expensive-looking, slightly-worn clothes. (He was wearing one of his more formal outfits, usually only reserved for events held in their castle).

“And I’m here to see the King and the Princes,” Chanyeol continued. 

The guard nodded his head in understanding, moving to the side with an outstretched arm, welcoming him in. 

Chanyeol finally let himself smile at the guard as he passed. 

“Thank you,” Chanyeol said, Jongin barking with him. 

The guard started at the sound of the bark but shook his head and laughed at himself before resuming his duties.

Letting out a relieved breath, Chanyeol closed his eyes to calm his still racing heart. 

When he raised his head again, he let himself take in the well maintained walkway toward the castle, bushes, benches and a maze of a garden that lay at both sides of the straight stone path leading towards the stairs up to the castle doors. 

He set Farasha on a faster pace from the strolling she was content on doing. A messenger wouldn’t stroll about, Chanyeol thought as he made Farasha gallop the rest of the way. 

_ I think I’m going to be sick _ , Jongin suddenly said, his voice mixing along with Chanyeol’s nervous thoughts.

That made Chanyeol laugh. 

_ That’s what you get for turning into a dog and hitching a ride on a horse, _ Chanyeol snorted. 

Jongin only huffed. 

Farasha slowed to a trot as they neared the foot of the marble staircase, stopping exactly in front of the doors, stable boys immediately approaching them as Chanyeol hopped down and reached for the bag Jongin was in. 

The stable boys led Farasha away after much reassurance that they’d take care of her as Chanyeol watched helplessly, afraid to lose a companion from Elyxion.

_ Would you have stayed here and sulked if I hadn’t come along? _ Jongin teased as Chanyeol let him down on the ground. Brown and small and fluffy, Jongin began wagging his tail when he was finally let out of the bag. 

_ Yes _ , Chanyeol admitted before turning to the door and starting his ascent on the stairs, trying to look as dignified as he could. Jongin climbed along beside him, even going so far as running ahead and waiting for him at the top of the stairs. 

There were a dozen people milling about with them. Some wore puffy dresses and elegant suits while most bore the clothes of commoners and servants. The glass windows let in sunlight from the outside; making the marble interior shine. Portraits and vases filled with flowers lined the hallways left and right. Below the twin staircases that led to the upper floors, Chanyeol could barely see glass doors leading to a courtyard outside and what seemed to be a large fountain in the distance. 

He stood there at the mouth of the entrance, frozen and unsure of where to go. Jongin danced around his ankles, biting the end of his pants and pulling him forward.

_ Come on! _

_ Wait _ , Chanyeol hissed back.

After looking around for a second, Chanyeol approached a girl carrying what seemed to be a basket of freshly picked apples as she walked through the doors. 

“Excuse me,” Chanyeol said in the voice he usually used to soothe animals enough not to scare them away. 

The girl looked up at him, surprised. As if she wasn’t used to being noticed. 

“Good afternoon,” Chanyeol tried for a winning smile and the maid gave a little squeak. “Could you tell me where the throne room is? I’m supposed to have an audience with the King.”

She pointed toward the left hallway where a few people seemed to coming and going. 

“The doors are wide open,” the girl said; her voice a bit shaky. “It’s very hard to miss.”

With that, she scurried off.

_ Seems like you’re as bad with human women as with Fae females, _ Jongin snickered in his thoughts as he prodded on ahead of him. 

_ I’d like to see  _ you _try_ , Chanyeol snapped, following dutifully behind. He crossed the hallway in long strides as Jongin trotted along beside him. He reached the throne room in no time, instantly regretting his haste to get there. But all his worries disappeared when he spied at the end of the rich rolled out carpet, standing beside the human king, was the one he had gone through all of it for. 

Baekhyun.

In a red tunic lined with gold and dark trousers, he stood with the crown of a prince as he and his brother listened to the current subject kneeling in front of them, seeking help for something Chanyeol couldn’t be bothered to hear. 

While he waited at the door to be ushered in, he stared and stared and stared at Baekhyun. None of the childish softness in his face. 

Of course, what did Chanyeol expect? It had been 10 years, there was bound to be changes. 

_ That’s him, right? The one in red? _

_ If you’re referring to the one on the throne, then, no. But if you’re talking about the one standing next to him, then,  _ Chanyeol exhaled a breath

_ Yes _ .

He didn’t even notice time passing by, barely noticing that they had finished consoling the man in front of him and that they were ushering him forward. 

He simply couldn’t take his eyes off of Baekhyun, the way something tugged at his heart so clearly and strongly. He was worried they might hear it hammering in his chest. In the back of his mind, secondary to the blankness as he looked only at Baekhyun, he could hear Jongin saying something. 

As Chanyeol and Jongin approached, Baekhyun and the man sitting on the throne talked to each other about something Chanyeol couldn’t hear above the rushing in his ears. 

He pulled his gaze away from Baekhyun to try to get some clarity back into his muddled up head and instead looked at the human King. He looked way too young to be Baekhyun’s father. Perhaps it was Baekhyun’s elder brother then, Junmyeon.

He had a face that a fairy tale prince might have had – handsome and sweet and kind.

That face became even more approachable and open when he looked to him and smiled. 

“And, who are you?”

The king said it kindly as if to a child. Chanyeol slid his gaze back to Baekhyun who hadn’t yet looked at him completely, instead he looked back to talk to – 

Oh! Baekhyun talked to the man that rode alongside him in the meadow last week during their hunt. The one with the wide eyes and stern look. 

_ Chanyeol, _ Jongin’s voice forced itself into Chanyeol’s mind. _Answer his question_

Clearing his throat, straightening his back and blinking away his nervousness he bent at the middle in the low bow. 

“My name is Chanyeol, Your Majesty.”

He could literally _feel_ as Baekhyun turned in a whirl to look at him but as he straightened up again he kept his eyes locked on the king

“And I am here to bring a message from Elyxion.”

The king’s brows rose at that. 

Chanyeol could see Baekhyun staring at him with the latter’s mouth slightly agape from the corner of his eye and it took _every single ounce_ of his will not to meet his stare.

“A message for who?” The king sat forward in interest, studying him and the clothes he wore, the bag slung across his chest and Jongin, the brown dog, as he sat there stoically staring back the king. 

“For Prince Baekhyun.”

The king looked to the side, at Baekhyun, in surprise and Chanyeol finally tore his gaze from the king to Baekhyun and the sudden spike in his pulse when their eyes met almost sent him to his knees. 

Chanyeol had learned to read Baekhyun’s emotions through his eyes when they were younger and he still hadn’t forgotten his tells. Though there was only a look of slight shock on his face, the way the brown in his eyes roiled told Chanyeol that Baekhyun couldn’t believe what he was seeing. 

He saw his eyes rove over him, studying him carefully. His now red hair, his brown muddy eyes and the round ears.

“Chanyeol,” Baekhyun breathed out when it seemed like he finally believed that his weren’t just deceiving him. 

“You know this man, Baekhyun?” The king asked the prince.

Jongin just sat there, whipping his head back and forth between those who decided to talk. Baekhyun’s companion stayed silent behind him. 

“I – uh, yes. We met, years and years ago,” Baekhyun said, not taking his eyes off of Chanyeol for one second. 

Something about the response seemed to confuse the king. He looked between the two of them much like the way Jongin did, his brows furrowed. 

“Would you like to talk to him in private?” The king asked in a soft voice. It reminded him of Jongdae. 

It took Chanyeol a second to realize that the king was asking _him_ and not Baekhyun. 

Chanyeol looked to the king in surprise just as Baekhyun did. 

“My name is Junmyeon. It’s very nice to meet you, Chanyeol. I hope we get to talk more later, for it seems you and my brother,” a cutting glance to Baekhyun. “ – have some unspoken business to deal with.”

For a split second, a conversation seemed to happen between the brothers as they exchanged looks and Chanyeol took that chance to take a glance at Jongin who had been looking up at him, his head tilted back. 

_ He loves you, too, you know. The way you two were staring at each other,  _ Jongin paused _, there wasn’t a way to describe it. It was heart-wrenchingly disgusting and yet…sweet._

Chanyeol didn’t give a response as Baekhyun finally stepped down the few steps separating them, his hair a light brown as a ray of sunlight shining through the windows from above. 

“I’ll come with you,” the wide-eyed boy said, stepping forward with a look of worry on his face. Baekhyun smiled over his shoulder and Chanyeol’s heart clenched to see that smile even if it wasn’t directed at him. 

“I’ll be fine, Kyungsoo. Hold the fort here with Junmyeon while I’m away.”

“I can handle myself, you know,” Junmyeon huffed good-naturedly but the one called Kyungsoo stayed where he was, eyeing Baekhyun’s back worriedly. Those eyes moved to Chanyeol’s, making him look away shyly only to find Baekhyun looking at him as well. 

“Come on,” he said, jerking his head in the direction of the doors behind him. “Let’s talk out in the garden.”

Baekhyun passed by him without another word. Chanyeol whirled to follow him but turned back to the king to bow again before following Baekhyun out. Jongin stood up from his seat on the floor and followed. 

Baekhyun stayed silent as they walked through the hallway, Chanyeol a step behind, unsure of what to say. Instead, he watched everyone that passed by pause as Baekhyun neared. From the way his cheeks lifted, Chanyeol could tell that he smiled politely at everyone. 

They got to the castle entrance, taking a right toward the hallway between the two towering staircases and still meters away, Chanyeol’s eyes struggled to adjust to the brightness and heat. 

When they stepped out unto the stone staircase leading to the castle gardens, Chanyeol took a brief second to admire the well-trimmed bushes and shrubs cut into various shapes, the trees scattered here and there, some with fruits others with flowers. 

A beautiful fountain rose up in the middle of the stone pathway. 

There were high hedges cutting through the garden and Chanyeol didn’t hesitate to follow when Baekhyun led them through one of the paths.

_ Are we sure he isn’t getting us lost in this maze just so he can murder us in secret and bury us in their backyard,  _ Jongin said, a hint of amusement in his tone. 

_ Your imagination knows no limits, Jongin.  _

_ Life would be boring if it did.  _

Chanyeol was too busy having a silent conversation with Jongin that he hadn’t noticed Baekhyun stopping. They seemed to be in one of the gems hidden all across the maze. A beautiful gazebo stood in the middle of the carpet of green, healthy grass, wrapped with creeping vines that had purple flowers blooming everywhere. 

Baekhyun, without looking at him even once as they walked there, walked into the gazebo and sat on one of the benches against one corner. 

Chanyeol walked in after him cautiously, afraid to meet his eyes as he took the seat opposite to him, two meters or maybe more separating them.

He didn’t know why but now that they were alone together (Jongin had decided to stay outside the gazebo to give them a bit of privacy), Chanyeol couldn’t look at him at all. His heart was pounding like crazy – so much so that he was worried that Baekhyun might hear even without the heightened Fae hearing. 

After what seemed like hours of silence stretching on and on, Baekhyun – _Baekhyun_ – finally spoke. 

“I can’t believe you’re here.”

Chanyeol didn’t understand the tone so he finally dragged his gaze from the wooden floorboard up to Baekhyun’s. His expression was unreadable but his eyes were soft. 

He let out a nervous laugh, not knowing what or how to reply. 

“Me neither,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s been so long.”

“I thought I was dreaming you up when I saw you inside the throne room. And that day in the forest, too,” Baekhyun suddenly admitted. 

“You’d dream me up in the middle of giving counsel with your king?” 

“You know I tend to daydream.”

Baekhyun said this as if he and Chanyeol knew everything about each other, as if the last ten years didn’t happen and they’d stayed as friends throughout all that time. 

But still Chanyeol nodded. 

“I do know that.”

Still with that unreadable expression on his face, Baekhyun straightened. 

“What _are_ you doing here?”

_ I came to see you _ , Chanyeol wanted to say.

An easy lie came to Chanyeol’s lips instead. 

“I’m here to study mortal court systems and livelihoods. Jongdae sent me to do some…studying.”

Baekhyun’s eyebrows flicked up, not even looking convinced. But he didn’t say anything more about it. 

“You look different,” he said instead, his eyes softening as he studied Chanyeol and Chanyeol found himself doing the same to Baekhyun. 

“Ten years does a lot to a person,” Chanyeol joked and to his utter delight, a small smile appeared on the edge of Bakehyun’s lips. 

“I meant from last week, in the Forest,” Baekhyun gave him a pointed look. “When you _ran_ away from me.”

Chanyeol flushed, some part of him marveling at the fact that they could talk normally like this. 

“I was trying to lead you away from anything mortal eyes shouldn’t see.”

“I wasn’t going to lead them to the waterfalls.” A hint of the pout Baekhyun used to have when he sulked when they were younger appeared. 

“I knew that. I was just shocked, I guess,” Chanyeol admitted, raising an arm to rub the back of his neck. “I hadn’t seen you in a long time and well, I didn’t know you were a _prince._ ”

“Oh,” Baekhyun looked as if he was now realizing that he had never told Chanyeol that little bit of information about himself when they were younger, glancing down at his princely regalia and reaching up to touch the crown on his head. 

“I didn’t tell you about that, huh?”

“You didn’t tell me you weren’t ever going to come back after that day either.”

“Things,” Baekhyun trailed off with a sigh. “Happened.”

It wasn’t much of an explanation but Chanyeol knew better than to pry. So, despite feeling empty because of the lack of an explanation, Chanyeol shrugged. 

“It’s okay. I got over it.”

Baekhyun’s eyes shuttered a bit as they looked at each other again. 

“I _wanted_ to visit. Only, when I had enough time and it was finally appropriate enough to leave, I had already convinced myself that you – all of you – were just a figment of my childhood, lonely, imagination.”

It was a feat not to ask more questions about what exactly happened but Chanyeol reined it all in and gave him a comforting smile. 

“I wanted to go back and look for you, too. Last week. I decided that I would after my brother’s birthday party and all the guests had gone. I was ready to go looking for the entrance behind the waterfalls and bursting through your city just to see you again.”

Chanyeol’s heart stuttered in his chest when he said those words but words evaded him. He imagined seeing Baekhyun again all throughout last week and had planned out things to say but now that he was here in front of him, he didn’t know what to say. 

“I wanted to see you, too. I think Jongdae noticed it, too, that’s why he sent me here.”

“Well, then I guess I have Jongdae to thank for.”

Another awkward pause passed but everything felt…warmer and comfortable. 

“How long do you plan on staying?” Baekhyun broke the silence again, leaning forward. “Have you found lodgings in the city?”

“Oh,” Chanyeol blushed. “I haven’t really thought that far ahead. The first thing I had to do was to get you to talk to me and then I just figure I’d wing it from there.”

A bright grin stretched across Baekhyun’s lips and Chanyeol could literally feel himself melting into mush at the sight of it. 

“You want to stay here in the castle with us? I could ask the maids to dust a room up for you. There are a dozen guests staying with us anyway.”

“If it isn’t too much trouble,” Chanyeol responded timidly. 

Baekhyun only waved a hand absentmindedly. “It’s nothing. So, I guess it’s your turn to be taken around my world?”

“You didn’t expect that my services from ten years ago were free, did you?” Chanyeol smiled back at him. 

Just as everything was going well, Baekhyun suddenly stood up, making Chanyeol mirror the action. He assumed that they were already leaving the gazebo but instead, Baekhyun only walked the few steps between them and peered up at him. 

Chanyeol found if very hard to stay his ground and not take a step back. 

He wondered amusedly if this was how Baekhyun had felt when they had first met. Except maybe Baekhyun’s heart had been pounding because of fright back then. Chanyeol’s heart was pounding for an entirely different reason. 

Up close, Chanyeol could see all of Baekhyun’s features, more defined now than ten years ago. Now that Chanyeol felt plain as a human, Baekhyun seemed ethereal with his glittering brown eyes and handsome face. 

“I was right,” Baekhyun said, pulling Chanyeol away from his admiration. “Your ears are round.”

Then, Baekhyun reached up to touch his ears and Chanyeol was so surprised and flustered that his heart gave a lurch against his ribs that it _physically_ hurt. Chanyeol was left there to stare at this beautiful human in front of him, his breath hitching in his throat. 

“How?” Baekhyun asked, gaping at him, still massaging Chanyeol’s ear. 

Chanyeol was sure that his ear was so red that Baekhyun could feel just how much it was burning in embarrassment.

He had to clear his throat twice to be coherent enough to be understood. 

“I – uh, well – uhm,” he shook his head to try to focus on his words instead of Baekhyun’s fingers. “I asked Minseok to turn me into a human. I didn’t think you mortals would’ve welcomed me with open arms if I still had the pointy ears and pink hair.”

“But I liked your pink hair,” Baekhyun simply said, his hand travelling from Chanyeol’s ear up to the red tufts of his hair.

A shiver went down Chanyeol’s back.

“I doubt anyone besides the children would have shared the sentiment,” Chanyeol breathed out. 

Baekhyun must have noticed Chanyeol’s stiff expression and posture and finally stepped away, his hand falling from Chanyeol’s hair. Baekhyun’s warmth left and Chanyeol found that his body missed it. 

If Chanyeol wasn’t mistaken, Baekhyun’s cheeks were a bit red as he took a step back, looking away, to the windows of the castle to his right. It was likely due to the heat. 

When Baekhyun looked back at him, his expression was unreadable again and it put Chanyeol on uneven footing. 

Ten years ago, Chanyeol could easily read Baekhyun like an open book but now he couldn’t even guess what Baekhyun was thinking. 

After letting out a deep breath, Baekhyun smiled at Chanyeol before nodding in the direction back to the castle. 

“Should we go back inside?”

Chanyeol nodded wordlessly, following behind him, that awkward silence falling between them again. He couldn’t be sure but it looked like Baekhyun’s smile didn’t quite reach his eyes that time. 

“But I’ll admit,” Baekhyun suddenly said, Chanyeol perking up at the sudden strike of conversation. “Your eyes are a little less unnerving now.”

Baekhyun looked at him over a shoulder and this time when he smiled, his eyes were as bright and as soft as they were a decade ago. 

When they had invited Chanyeol to dinner, he had expected to sit at one of the tables at the corners of the Great Hall - not here. 

Not right beside Baekhyun at the head table on a platform above all the others, a feast fit for kings in front of him. 

Chanyeol sat beside Baekhyun, quiet as a mouse as he ate his food. 

Feasts back at Jongdae’s palace were usually rowdy and loud and fun but here in this marble hall, it was quiet save for a few people murmuring amongst themselves and the clink of silverware on expensive plates. Along with their table up front, two more long tables were lined below, filled with people.

“Is it usually this quiet?” Chanyeol muttered to Baekhyun seated at his right. Baekhyun let out a low chuckle, shaking his head.

“People are only quiet tonight because they’re murmuring and staring at you _and_ the adorable dog you brought with you.” 

Said adorable dog was currently sitting on the younger prince, Sehun’s, lap, napping comfortably as the prince ate his dinner, unbothered. 

Chanyeol flushed red. Now that Baekhyun mentioned it, he noticed that quite a few people were craning their necks to get a look at him at the head table. He wanted to hunch his shoulders and sink under the table but years sitting at the King’s table back in Elyxion had taught him a thing a two about stares. 

Baekhyun, sensing, how uncomfortable he was becoming despite trying to look indifferent, reassured him. 

“Don’t worry, people stared too the day after Prince Yixing arrived.”

“The day after?”

“Well, people were too busy dancing and drinking at the welcoming feast the first night to really bother with the prince. A lot of the eligible ladies sent a few looks his way, though.”

There were six of them at that table (seven if you counted Jongin): King Junmyeon; Princes Yixing, Baekhyun, and Sehun (and Jongin); Kyungsoo, the brothers’ closest advisor; and plain old Chanyeol. 

Baekhyun had given him a short tour of the castle before leading him to the baths to wash up, telling him that hopefully his room would be ready in the evening and that he was free to roam around the garden and the courtyards before dinner. Then he turned a corner and disappeared while Chanyeol ushered to the public baths their servants used. 

Hours later, he sat there, washed and wearing the more fancier clothes he brought along with him from home, picking at his food. Not entirely hungry.

He hadn’t expected to feel so homesick when the sun went down. Now, he was feeling eternally grateful that Jongin had gone with him on this little trip. The thought of facing all of this alone without the small, brown dog currently on the lap of Prince Sehun made Chanyeol want to go running home. 

“So, Chanyeol,” Junmyeon suddenly began in a voice loud enough to be heard across the entire hall because of the silence. Some turned to look at them, others kept to their food but everyone had one ear on their conversation. He leaned forward and looked to the side, across the table to meet his eyes. 

Junmyeon’s eyes were similar to Baekhyun’s, soft and kind. 

“Did you and Baekhyun get to talk things through?” 

There was nothing incriminating in his tone, just pure curiosity and a polite attempt at conversation. 

Baekhyun, who could have easily answered the question, kept quiet as he chewed through his roasted duck. 

Chanyeol cleared his throat before answering. 

“Yes, we did some catching up this afternoon.”

“That’s good to hear,” Junmyeon gave him a genuine smile. “How long do you plan on staying? I do hope you’ll be able to stay until the ball we’re throwing for Sehun’s birthday this weekend. You’re very much invited.”

This time, Baekhyun _did_ answer. 

“It’s true that he came initially for me,” Baekhyun began. “But he’s staying to study. Our people and our ways.”

“Also, I’m afraid I’ve grown quite attached to your dog,” Sehun from the other end of the table piped up, catching the attention of everyone on their table and then some as he lifted Jongin up who had seemed to have woken up from his nap. 

Jongin let out a bark of excitement. 

_ Enjoying yourself?  _ Chanyeol directed the thought toward Jongin, knowing that he’d be listening. 

_ Very much,  _ Jongin replied, laughing a little. 

_ I always knew you loved being coddled.  _

“If that is the case, then you may stay as long as you want, Chanyeol,” Junmyeon said warmly before turning around to join the conversation Prince Yixing and Prince Sehun were having about the dog. 

Jongin must be enjoying the attention immensely. 

“Aren’t you at all suspecting me as a spy from an enemy kingdom or anything along those lines?” Chanyeol asked, looking at Baekhyun who had just continued eating his food. 

He snorted. 

“Are you?”

“Well, no.”

“Our kingdom isn’t known to start fights. We thrive on our own and keep to or own. We build alliances, hence Prince Yixing over there, not create enemies. Any hint of war or malicious intent towards our city and its people hasn’t been heard of _for years._ And that’s all thanks to my brother. ”

Chanyeol wondered about that. Junmyeon didn’t seem to be that much older than Baekhyun and if his assumptions were correct, then he would have ascended to the throne at such a young age. Chanyeol wanted to ask Baekhyun for the whole story – why he suddenly stopped visiting ten years ago? Why were he and his brothers, all of them still so young, the ones already ruling their kingdom. 

But Chanyeol decided against asking those questions. 

“I’m sure he’d say he had a lot of help from the people around him,” Chanyeol simply said. 

“He’s the type that would do so, yes.”

“He’s very admirable.”

Baekhyun merely nodded.

“I think so, too.”

Later that night, when the guests and the members of the royal family’s court had gone to the game rooms to play some cards and have a few drinks, the king going along with them, Chanyeol had told Baekhyun that he was feeling tired from the journey and that he wanted to get some rest.

“I think I’m about to turn in as well,” Baekhyun agreed. They went up to Sehun, Junmyeon, Kyungsoo and Yixing, all of them planning to have a round of cards with the others, and told them of their intentions. 

Jongin, having heard that Chanyeol was leaving, wiggled in Sehun’s grip until the prince bent down enough for Jongin to hop out of his arms and pad over to Chanyeol’s side. 

The four of them bid them goodnight as they turned down the hall and the three of them went in the opposite direction.  

Baekhyun barely said anything as he led them to their rooms, pointing down hallways as he briefly explained what Chanyeol might find there. The kitchens, the library, the ballroom, servant’s quartes, guest’s quarters and a whole lot more that by the end of it Chanyeol’s head was whirling with information. 

Baekhyun let out a little laugh when he looked over his shoulder to see Chanyeol with his face scrunched up, trying to remember everything.

“You’ll have to explore everything tomorrow and all the days to come while you’re here. You’re always free to roam around the city where you wish. I will rarely be able to join you but I will when I can.”

A bit of Chanyeol deflated when Baekhyun mentioned that. How was he going to make Baekhyun fall in love with him if they were rarely going to see each other even inside the castle. 

The solution to that problem came hitting Chanyeol in the face in the next five minutes as Baekhyun opened the door to the room where Chanyeol and Jongin would be staying and Baekhyun said,

“Everywhere else is full and I don’t really want you to stay in one of the servant’s rooms, not like there’s any space there either, so I told them to set up a cot here instead,” Baekhyun said as he went about lighting candles around the room, slowly revealing bits and pieces of it. 

When he neared a window, he threw open the curtains to let the moonlight in and Chanyeol realized that it wasn’t just a window but rather a glass doorway that led to a stone and marble balcony outside. 

“And where is _here_?” Chanyeol asked, looking around the now well-lit room. 

The moonlight now glowed over the rest of the spacious room. They had entered a lounge with a desk with papers overflowing set to the far right and a few couches surrounding a fire place. To the left was an open doorway towards what seemed to be the sleeping area. 

That’s where Baekhyun continued walking, bringing with him a candle, motioning for Chanyeol to follow. 

In the middle of the room was a giant four poster bed with drapes and sheets of the color blue. Dressers could be found on both ends of the room beside big windows. Another armchair was in this room beside a tall bookshelf with books hastily piled together as if they were always being moved around. To the far left was a closed door which probably led to the washroom. Near the entrance where they were standing was a comfortable-enough looking bed with sheets that looked so soft Chanyeol wanted to bury himself in them. 

He ran a finger along the edges of the wood of his now assigned bed. 

“This is my room.”

Chanyeol’s head jerked up so fast he feared he might’ve have gotten whiplash. 

“ _Your_ room?” Chanyeol choked. 

“Yeah,” Baekhyun shrugged, plopping down on the edge of the four-poster bed and tugging on the laces of his boots, before looking up worriedly as if just now realizing that Chanyeol might not be entirely comfortable with that. 

“Unless you’d rather sleep somewhere else? There still might be inns open in town. I could send you off with a couple of guards to show you the way.”

The fact that Baekhyun had started rambling told Chanyeol that maybe he was just as flustered with the sleeping arrangements as he was. 

“No,” Chanyeol said, shaking his head and settling down on the bed slowly. “No, here’s fine.”

Then, he went ahead and started unlacing his own boots, trying not to let the silence between them make him too uncomfortable. There was only the rustle of clothes as Baekhyun started removing his jacket, Chanyeol jumping to his feet. 

Why? He didn’t know but his face was flaming and he couldn’t look anywhere near the bed. 

“You can go ahead and clean up first,” Baekhyun just said, pointing to the door to his left, mercifully not mentioning how flushed Chanyeol looked. “I have some work to do before I go to sleep so I apologize if the sound of a scratching pen or the rustling of papers bothers you.”

Chanyeol forced himself to shrug.

“I can handle it,” he said, still not able to look at Baekhyun in the eyes when he his gaze had passed by him and had caught that the buttons on his shirt were unbuttoned low, low, low. 

He grabbed his more comfortable clothes from his bag and rushed to the washroom. 

When he emerged, in loose pajamas and his face wet from the careless way he had splashed it with water to hopefully cool himself down, Jongin, still a puppy, was sitting up straight on his bed, his tail thumping on the bed. Through the doorway he could see Baekhyun poring over his papers on his desk, a candle burning bright by his side to light whatever what he was doing and his blue shirt still unbuttoned low on his chest, his hair messier now than before. 

Chanyeol tore his gaze away from the sight, sighing instead at Jongin. 

“Should you be on the bed when you’ve been walking everywhere with those dirty paws of yours?” Chanyeol frowned at Jongin disapprovingly. 

“Hm?” Baekhyun hummed from the other room. “Did you say something?”

“Nothing,” Chanyeol called out. “Just talking to the dog.”

_ You can’t possibly expect me to sleep on the floor? _ Jongin asked, appalled.

_ You want be a dog? You have to be treated like a dog. _ Chanyeol smirked. 

Jongin wrinkled his snout at him and let loose a growl to which Chanyeol just let out a laugh. 

“Fine, fine,” Chanyeol chuckled, picking him up and bringing him to the washroom. “But you’re going to have to wash up first.”

When Jongin was deemed clean enough to lie on the bed, he left him by the washroom rug to dry his fur while he went back to his bed to flip the sheets over. 

And when that was done, he looked back at Jongin, still dripping on the rug. 

_ Why don’t you go and talk to him?  _ Jongin suddenly suggested. 

_ He’s busy.  _

_ Too busy to talk to a friend he hasn’t seen in ten years? A friend he invited into his home and to sleep in his room? _

_ Yes?  _ Chanyeol answered doubtfully. 

If dogs could roll their eyes sarcastically, he was sure Jongin might have done just that. 

_ You’re staying in the same room and you honestly expect that he’ll appreciate it if you stayed here every night just to silently go to sleep without even exchanging a word? _

_ Am I supposed to be doing something else?  _

_ I can think of a few things you can do in the privacy of his room. _

Chanyeol could just picture Jongin’s grinning face as he let out a sigh. 

“Chanyeol, are you asleep?” Baekhyun suddenly called out, making Chanyeol tense a bit in surprise. 

“No,” he called out, padding out of the bedroom to see Baekhyun still in the same spot he was.

_ Go get him, tiger.  _ Jongin laughed into his mind.

“Oh,” a small smile played on the lips of Baekhyun. “You were being so quiet in there that I thought you had fallen asleep.”

“I’m waiting for the dog to dry,” Chanyeol said, plopping down unceremoniously on the couch nearest the desk, twisting a bit to face Baekhyun. A part of Chanyeol felt giddy when Baekhyun seemed to give him his undivided attention instead of sifting through his papers even with Chanyeol there like he had expected.

“Does your dog have a name? It’s very cute.”

Chanyeol gave him a secretive smile.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I did. I’m not sure how you’d take the information.”

“Did you name it after me?” Baekhyun asked, a teasing grin now on his face. 

“Unfortunately, no.”

“Is it a secret?”

“Well, no. But if I tell you, I have a feeling you’d be…disturbed.”

“Disturbed?” Someone chuckled from behind him, walking out of the bedroom. “I have a feeling he’d be blessed.” 

Baekhyun’s eyes flashed from Chanyeol’s to Jongin’s, his face suddenly becoming cautious and stony at the sight of the stranger. 

“Who have you brought to my home?” Baekhyun said in a low voice, not taking his eyes off of Jongin. Chanyeol hastily stood up and turned to his friend. 

Jongin stood there, silver hair and silver eyes glinting, still wearing the clothes Chanyeol had last seen him in and yet as handsome as ever. 

Chanyeol turned back to Baekhyun.

“Do you not remember him?” Chanyeol asked, tilting his head to the side at Baekhyun. “I don’t think he’s changed _that_ much.”

Baekhyun, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion, glanced between the two of them, as he tried to make the connection. Slowly, his stony expression softened into that of recognition and surprise. 

“Jongin,” Baekhyun exclaimed, his eyes widening. “Jongin, right? Wow.”

He stood up and started walking closer to them and the years of training to protect Jongin had Chanyeol moving with half a thought. 

Chanyeol stood between Jongin and Baekhyun in a heartbeat, standing tall and limbs loose, ready for anything. With a blink, Chanyeol realized what he had just done. 

He stepped back in horror when Baekhyun looked up at him, startled and a bit amused. He could hear Jongin snickering behind him. 

“Sorry,” Chanyeol said, stepping to the side and away. “I just – Jongin’s a prince and he’s my friend and I’m sworn to protect him.”

“I didn’t realize I looked so scary,” Baekhyun chuckled but stepping away, all the same. 

“It hurts my pride that you think I’d be easily taken down by this little human,” Jongin grinned at him and stepping up to his side, his eyes glinting. “You haven’t changed a bit, Baekhyun.”

“You’ve got to admit that I’ve changed even just by a bit,” Baekhyun spread his arms to the sides. 

Jongin hummed, giving Baekhyun a considering look before shrugging. 

“Handsome you might be but you’re still short.”

Baekhyun pouted before rolling his eyes. Jongin then turned to Chanyeol. 

“Since the cat’s – or should I say, ‘dog’ – is out of the bag. I can’t stay here with you. We’d never fit into that bed. Unless, of course, Baekhyun offers to share his bed with you,” A roguish wink thrown at Baekhyun that made Chanyeol blush.

Baekhyun just scoffed before walking back to his desk, ready to get back to his work. 

“I wasn’t kidding about there being no more rooms,” Baekhyun turned back to them, frowning. “Maybe the maids can scrounge up a sleeping bag somewhere.”

Jongin raised a hand, shaking his head. 

“It’s alright. I’ll just teleport back to my room in Elyxion, no biggie. I just wanted to see Chanyeol off anyway.”

“You can teleport?” Baekhyun asked, his brows rose, impressed. 

Chanyeol’s, however, furrowed.

“Are you sure? Teleporting takes a lot out of your reserves. Especially with a jump this far and you just shifted back.”

Jongin only smiled at him.

“Then it’s a good thing I’m going straight to bed.” 

He bowed at the waist.

“Good night, Your Highness. Good night, Chanyeol,” he said when he straightened up again. 

_ Good luck _ , Jongin added for Chanyeol mind-to-mind.

And with that he disappeared with a whoosh of wind that rustled the curtains in Baekhyun’s room. When the breeze had gone and with it any trace of Jongin, Chanyeol realized that he was once again alone with Baekhyun and his heart started racing. 

“He’s gotten a thousand times handsomer since the last time I saw him,” Baekhyun merely said, shaking his head amusedly. “And can all of you teleport?”

Chanyeol slid back on to his seat back on the couch nearest the desk.

“No,” he said. “Only a fair few. I can’t.”

“Well, that’s what you have wings for, then.”

“I guess,” Chanyeol nodded, his mind whirling again with thoughts of what he should do now. Should he just excuse himself and go to sleep? Should he just stay here and talk more? 

He didn’t know what Baekhyun would want.

So, maybe he should ask. Before Chanyeol could, Baekhyun already beat him to it. 

“Do _you_ still have any powers in that form of yours?” Baekhyun asked without looking up from his paper and pen. 

At least it was something to talk about. 

“A very minimal amount compared to what I usually have. I’m still not used to it,” Chanyeol admitted, wiggling his fingers in front of him, as if he could imagine the flames there but, of course, he didn’t summon them. He didn’t want to accidentally set something on fire.

Chanyeol turned to look back at Baekhyun only to find his eyes already on him, a small smile playing on Baekhyun’s lips.

Chanyeol was suddenly thankful for the dim lighting of the room because the way that Baekhyun was looking at him right now only served to make him feel more flustered, making him blush profusely.

“What?” Chanyeol asked, a little bit defensively. 

“I hadn’t realized how much I missed you,” Baekhyun said clearly. So clear, in fact, that it was impossible for Chanyeol to have just dreamed it up. 

“You look so different and yet the same, it’s weird,” Baekhyun continued, laughing mostly to himself. “Although, you do seem to talk less now.”

“That’s just because I’m nervous,” Chanyeol blurted out, finally hearing something he could respond coherently to.

“I wish you wouldn’t be,” Baekhyun smiled again. “I’m still me. Just older and busier, maybe, but still me.”

“I know.”

The way the conversation had softened made Chanyeol’s heart pound so loudly he didn’t know what to do but focus on trying to get it to calm down.

“I remember what we talked about ten years ago,” Baekhyun suddenly said just when Chanyeol had thought that he wouldn’t be talking again for at least a few more minutes. He liked this Baekhyun. Confident and unfazed and calm. 

Chanyeol still had a long way to go before he felt _that_ comfortable with this Baekhyun that could make his breath hitch with just a smile or even just a word.

But he was getting there. 

“We talked about a lot of things,” Chanyeol tried to remember just how many things they had talked about that summer ten years ago. 

“About ‘mates’.”

If Chanyeol had been drinking something, he might have spit it all over the place. He just looked at Baekhyun with wide eyes, hoping beyond hope that Baekhyun might be aware of what lay between them. 

“Are you and Jongin mates?”

If Chanyeol had been _holding_ something, he might have shattered it in his hand. He sat up and shook his head wildly. 

“No,” he almost shouted. “What made you think that?”

Now, Baekhyun seemed embarrassed to have even asked, looking away from Chanyeol.

“I remembered reading about mates and the mating bond all those years ago and the way you got all protective over him a while ago had me wondering.”

“I would throw Jongin off a cliff if I could.”

Baekhyun let out a laugh and some delusional part of Chanyeol thought that it might have even sounded a bit relieved. 

“So, you _don’t_ have a mate?” 

_ You. You’re my mate.  _

“No,” Chanyeol said, his voice steadier than he thought it’d be. But the urge to say the words grew with each passing second so he stood up, ready to go to bed because he _knew_ it was too early to tell Baekhyun anything. His hair was still a dark red which meant that Baekhyun’s feelings hadn’t changed. 

If Chanyeol told him now, Baekhyun might not believe him. 

And Chanyeol wasn’t sure he could handle the rejection when he had spent so little time with him. 

So, he chickened out and told Baekhyun that he was tired and he should probably get some sleep. 

Baekhyun only nodded and told him that he’d be up for another hour or so before bidding him goodnight. 

Before Chanyeol went inside the bedroom though, he stopped and looked over a shoulder to look at Baekhyun. 

“Hey, Baekhyun.”

“Hm?” He looked up from his papers to look at him once more. 

“I missed you, too.”

Chanyeol hadn’t expected to spend his days in the human world doing nothing. 

Well, nothing of importance anyway. 

Not like what he was doing was actually good for anyone but him. 

The first morning he had woken up in Baekhyun’s room, Baekhyun hadn’t woken yet. A small sliver of sunlight passing through the curtains shined on him as he snored lightly away and Chanyeol couldn’t explain the emotion rushing through him but he felt like he was content to just stay there and stare at the sleeping prince for the whole day. 

A few minutes of staring at Baekhyun sleep made Chanyeol realize that Baekhyun wasn’t entirely snoring but rather doing these little noises that reminded Chanyeol of a whining dog. It was both funny _and_ cute. 

When it became apparent that Baekhyun wasn’t waking anytime soon and he didn’t want to get caught staring, Chanyeol decided to change and to go look for something to do, or better yet, something to eat. 

On his way down, he ran into the youngest prince, Sehun, wearing the most casual clothes he had seen any of the princes in. He wore a white cotton shirt and stretchable, fitted pants. 

Sehun spotted him, walking slowly down the staircase, trying to remember where to go to get to the kitchens.

“Hey,” Sehun had called out. Chanyeol had ignored him, assuming that he was calling someone else.

“Chanyeol, right?”                                                                                                                                        

Chanyeol slowed to a stop to look up at him in slight surprise before bowing. Sehun jogged down the steps separating them, a bright smile on his face, making it light up.

“Yes, Your Highness,” Chanyeol said as he straightened. 

“We didn’t get to talk yesterday,” Sehun said as he thrust out a hand, which Chanyeol took gingerly, smiling at him all the same. “My name is Sehun.”

“I know,” Chanyeol could only respond as he reached out to clasp Sehun’s hand in his for a handshake. 

“Are you on your way to get some breakfast?” 

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Sehun then started going down the staircase, indicating for Chanyeol to follow.

“My brother told me about you, you know,” Sehun started, looking over a shoulder to look at Chanyeol who was a few steps behind him. 

“Only bad things I hope,” Chanyeol joked, trying to get rid of the tension he was sure only he felt. With the way Sehun had his hands in his pockets and the lazy, comfortable smile on his face, Chanyeol could tell that he was as relaxed as he was ever going to be.

Sehun let out an amused laugh, shaking his head. 

“Sadly, no. He used to tell me stories when we were younger. Of the time he spent wandering around in the Forest.”

Chanyeol could only freeze and hold his breath as he realized where this was going. He had only assumed that Baekhyun had told his little brother some minor details according to the story that Chanyeol had spun about who he was yesterday.

“What were the stories about?” Chanyeol forced himself to ask, trying to act unfazed. 

“They were mostly about a pink-haired faerie he met – ”

Sehun glanced at Chanyeol’s unnatural red hair.

“- named Chanyeol.”

Stupid young Baekhyun. 

Well, there was no point in lying now. 

When Chanyeol didn’t say anything else, Sehun turned around completely to look at him. 

“You’re not here to take him away are you?”

Chanyeol blinked. He didn’t expect that question. There was nothing worried or scared in Sehun’s expression, just a curious angle of his head and a sad gaze.

“No, I just wanted to see him,” Chanyeol said reassuringly. “I haven’t seen him in a long while and when I was given the opportunity to go to the human world, I took it for him.”

Sehun studied him more but at least the sadness had faded from his eyes. 

“Are you really a Faerie?” Sehun asked excitedly.

Chanyeol had to laugh at the sudden brightness that exuded from the young prince. 

“Yes,” Chanyeol nodded, finally getting himself to start walking down the stairs again, Sehun moving to keep up with him.  

For someone who was younger than him by a few years, Sehun was really tall, Chanyeol marveled. 

“I have training before breakfast,” Sehun told him. “Would it be alright if you trained with me? Just some basic workouts and sword training.”

And that’s how he began to start his mornings training with Sehun instead of choosing to stay inside the room, contented to watch Baekhyun until he woke up. At least it was productive in a way. 

The castle was in a flurry of activity getting ready for Sehun’s birthday party in a few days. Servants were all over the place, polishing and putting up festive decorations. He spent most of his time with Sehun when Sehun wasn’t in his classes and Jongin out in the cover of the hedges in the garden. 

Minseok visited him, too, the other day when he was exploring the spacious gardens, looking for the fish pond Baekhyun had told him about during one of their late night talks in his room. 

Jongin had been nowhere to be seen when a squirrel came up to him. Chanyeol bent down to offer his hand for the squirrel to climb on to. Animals usually felt at ease around Chanyeol so it was no surprise when the squirrel climbed on without hesitation. 

What was surprising though was when Chanyeol had straightened from his crouch, the squirrel had started talking. And in Minseok’s voice. 

“I just wanted to see how you were doing,” the squirrel suddenly said. Chanyeol was so shocked he almost dropped him, shouting in surprise. 

When they had both calmed down, Squirrel-Minseok from falling a few feet off the ground and Chanyeol from the shock of seeing the talking squirrel, Minseok started talking again. 

“Jongin’s busy with prince duties so he can’t come over today. Jongdae’s been whining about seeing you but, of course, he can’t leave the palace. He wants to know when you’ll be able to visit.”

“I’ve barely been away for a week. And I haven’t made any headway with Baekhyun at all.”

“I can tell from the way your hair is still the same shade as the last time I saw you. Why? Is he maybe not attracted to men?”

Chanyeol blushed before moving to sit on the grass, bringing Minseok gently down with him.

“I don’t know,” Chanyeol admitted. “I haven’t really asked and he’s always busy so we’ve rarely actually talked. But I haven’t seen him with any women, though, so I don’t really know.”

The squirrel nodded sagely before patting him on the hand with its small paw. 

“Well, hang in there. I don’t think the potion in you has a time limit. Take all the time you need to sort things out. And whatever happens, we’ll be here for you.”

His days were usually spent like that, roaming around the castle and the castle grounds sometimes with Sehun or exploring the gardens with Jongin. He had gotten quite close to the prince during the past few days that he felt that he was truly welcome at the party as a friend. 

The day before the party, though, everyone was busy and Chanyeol had no one to talk to. Minseok and Jongin were nowhere to be found, Chanyeol rarely saw Baekhyun outside his bedroom and he hadn’t really made any other friends in the castle other than them. Humans were a bit more complicated than animals to befriend, Chanyeol was quickly learning. 

He ventured around the first floor of the west wing, not really having a destination in mind when the sound of someone playing the piano reached his ears. 

Still having the slightly better hearing than most humans, he tracked the source of the sound easily and found out that the sound was coming from a door slightly left ajar. He peeked through it and the sight he saw warmed his heart. 

Prince Yixing was playing the piano, a soft smile on his face. Chanyeol had thought that he was alone but standing beside the piano, watching him with an equally soft smile on his face was King Junmyeon. 

Chanyeol was already walking away to give them privacy when he realized that Junmyeon wasn’t smiling at the way the prince was playing so skillfully. 

No, not at all. 

He was smiling and staring at Yixing himself. Like he was taking that chance to do so while the prince’s eyes were preoccupied. 

Maybe his heart wasn’t the only heart in this castle that longed for a prince. 

“Chanyeol, the party starts in less than hour. We should –,” 

Chanyeol whirled around just as Baekhyun seemed to freeze under the doorway. An hour ago, Chanyeol had stumbled back to the room just as Baekhyun was about to change into his more formal clothes for the ball. Chanyeol had planned to get changed as well, the suit he asked Jongin to bring for him in his arms but he decided against it when he realized that the temptation to merely stand and stare as Baekhyun changed would be too much to handle. 

So, he lounged around on the couch, trying not to imagine how Baekhyun probably looked right now as he unbuttoned and buttoned. But trying not to think about it only led him to think about it more. 

When Baekhyun had emerged, telling Chanyeol that he could change, Chanyeol jumped off the couch and ran past him so fast, he was sure he was running at supernatural speed. 

Baekhyun had let out a little laugh out from behind him before walking to his desk to leave him to his business. 

Now, Chanyeol had been straightening his blue jacket threaded with silver as he looked into the full-body mirror Baekhyun had set out for the occasion when Baekhyun walked in to call him to the party. 

Baekhyun had donned on red and gold jacket over his deep red silk shirt and his hair had been styled and fixed by the maids Chanyeol had heard come in while he was changing. He didn’t know if the maids had added cosmetics or not but Chanyeol had never seen Baekhyun look so…perfect. 

Neither of them spoke for what seemed like hours but were only seconds, the tension on the air so taut it could be cut with a knife. 

Chanyeol, who thought he might actually go crazy if Baekhyun kept staring at him like that, finally cleared his throat. 

“Is it too much?” Chanyeol asked, fussing over himself, running his hands all over the material of his clothes, turning and looking at himself in the mirror. 

“No,” Baekhyun said, walking closer as Chanyeol watched his reflection in the mirror. “You’ll feel underdressed soon enough. Honestly, the outfits these people come up with.”

They shared an amused grin, looking at each other through the mirror. 

Chanyeol turned to actually look at Baekhyun and his heart skipped a beat. He hadn’t expected him to be standing so close. He was so close that Chanyeol could feel how warm he was. It was either that or his proximity was causing _Chanyeol_ to heat up. 

“I don’t think anyone’s going to top you, though. You look amazing.” 

Baekhyun looked up at him in surprise, those brown eyes of his widening with pleasant surprise and amusement, making Chanyeol suddenly realize what he had said. Throughout the few days he had spent here, embarrassing himself in front of Baekhyun by blurting out compliments had become a normal thing and now he wasn’t even blushing that hard now. 

He was surprised to see the slight tinge of red on Baekhyun’s cheeks as he laughed, though. 

Mercifully, Baekhyun didn’t say another word about it instead, he turned and started walking out. 

“Come on, a prince of the kingdom can’t be late.”

Chanyeol rushed off after him, both of them not noticing that Chanyeol’s red hair had started looking more black than red. 

The party was in full swing when Jongin pulled him to the side. 

“What are you doing here?” Chanyeol hissed when he realized just who exactly was staring at him, wearing what seemed like the night’s performers’ uniform. Jongin only grinned at him, his silver hair and silver eyes stark despite the bright lights of the ballroom. 

Chanyeol peeked at the side of Jongin’s face to see that he had round ears. 

“I asked Minseok to change it for me just for tonight,” Jongin answered the question roiling in Chanyeol’s eyes. 

“You didn’t think to change anything else?” Chanyeol demanded because despite the change Jongin had requested for his ears, people were staring whether it be men or women. Either because of his still silver hair and eyes or his god-like looks. 

“But then he wouldn’t recognize me,” Jongin simply said, peeking this way and that over Chanyeol’s shoulders, apparently looking for someone amidst the twirling and whirling bodies on the dance floor. 

All the princes and the young king had taken to dancing after Prince Sehun had started off the party by asking his younger cousin to accompany him for the first dance. Chanyeol could admit that it was a soft and pure sight to see – Sehun twirling the little girl in her flowing ball gown, easily lifting her off her feet. 

People had cooed and ‘aw’-ed around them and Chanyeol had been inclined to do the same but decided against it, settling instead for a wide smile like the one Sehun’s brothers had on their faces. 

“Who wouldn’t recognize you?” Chanyeol turned around to look at what exactly Jongin had come here for.

“Sehun.”

Chanyeol whirled back around to glare at Jongin. 

“How do you know Sehun and what do you want from him?” He demanded. Jongin might be his prince but he wasn’t about to let him play one of his games on the human prince. 

“We met in the forest the day you saw Baekhyun again. You told me to stay inside the kingdom but I didn’t,” Jongin started explaining. He told him about how Sehun had come riding into Jongin’s favorite flower field on a horse that almost trampled Jongin who had been taking a nap amidst all of the flowers, almost half-buried in them. They had struck up a conversation after Sehun had apologized profusely, bowing over and over again as he did, red in the face. Jongin had found it cute so he asked for the human prince to stay a while to keep him company. 

“Is that why you stuck with him for most of the day as a dog on our first day here?” Chanyeol fumed but he couldn’t bring himself to actually be angry when Jongin had looked so dazed and enamored and taken as he told the story. He looked like Chanyeol felt whenever Baekhyun crossed his mind. 

Jongin shrugged. 

“I might have also visited his room before leaving that night. Only for a little while, though,” Jongin quickly added when Chanyeol was about to give him an enraged retort. “He made me promise to come to his birthday party. So, here I am.”

Chanyeol let out a sigh, running his hands through his hair, still not noticing how much darker it had gotten.

“Did you teleport here?”

“Not directly into the castle. I couldn’t risk getting caught so I jumped straight into the gazebo, stole some clothes off of a person’s back after knocking him out – “

Chanyeol gave him a flat look which Jongin only ignored. 

“And snuck in as a performer.”

“And how exactly do you plan on talking to Sehun in the middle of all this?” 

“I have a plan that might benefit the both of us.”

Chanyeol arched an eyebrow at him.

“I’ve been watching you stare longingly at Baekhyun for the past hour and I know you want to ask him for a dance but you’re too worried about the looks people might give you so stay at the side and do nothing instead.”

Right now, Baekhyun was dancing with a middle-aged woman, swaying her this way and that, his mouth moving excitedly and Chanyeol could tell that he was telling her a story.

“You promised not to read my mind.”

“I didn’t,” Jongin laughed incredulously, clasping him on the shoulder. “You’re an open book, you know. Anyone who’d pay attention to you would know that you’ve only had eyes for Baekhyun the whole night.”

Chanyeol blushed at the statement. 

“Whatever. Tell me this plan of yours.”

“It’s easy. I ask Sehun to dance. All eyes will be on us and then you’d have your chance to ask Baekhyun.”

Chanyeol only looked at Jongin incredulously.

“That is by far the stupidest plan you have ever made. Let’s do it.”

Jongin smiled and went off in search for Sehun as Chanyeol walked closer to the area where Baekhyun danced. Though most of the guests danced along with them, there were a few that stood by on the side, waiting for a chance to dance with one of the princes. 

Chanyeol glanced up toward the thrones at the head of the room. Junmyeon sat in one while Yixing sat in the other, the two remaining vacant for the two princes dancing on the dance floor. The king and the prince of a foreign land seemed to be having fun as they talked while they caught their breaths. 

Chanyeol wondered if everyone else saw what he was seeing. 

He didn’t have much time to wonder more because then a collective hush and whispering spread across the room when Jongin started pulling Sehun to the center of the dance floor, everyone else clearing to the side as the passed. To Chanyeol’s delight, Baekhyun walked over to him, his eyes wide as he watched his younger brother be led into the next dance by Chanyeol’s best friend. 

And as the two princes started dancing – one black and one silver – everyone seemed to hold their breath. No one dared to comment about how there they were, two princes dancing together instead of a prince and princess. No one seemed to even question it in their mind, the sight too wonderful and beautiful to question harshly. 

Chanyeol then realized as he watched his two friends dance, shy smiles on their faces, that there was a flaw in the plan. With all eyes on the pair, he’d only attract them that much more if he pulled Baekhyun who still stood there gaping like a fish to the empty dance floor now. 

But his dilemma was solved when another gasp went through the crowd as Prince Yixing stood and offered his hand out to the king. Even as far away as he was, Chanyeol knew Yixing was asking Junmyeon to dance just as everyone knew. 

Even Sehun and Jongin stopped and watched as the two walked down from the dais to the dance floor, looked at them and then each other before shrugging and continuing their dance. 

As the people watched as the two pairs of men danced, Chanyeol could practically hear their thoughts, glancing between the two brothers and then the third; Baekhyun who stood at the side, shell-shocked. 

Well, Chanyeol didn’t want them to have to wait and wonder. Steeling himself, he turned to Baekhyun and just as Baekhyun opened his mouth probably to say something about what was happening, Chanyeol held out his hand just as Yixing had done, effectively shutting him up. 

“Would you like to dance?” Chanyeol asked. 

And the look Baekhyun gave him, the mix of fear and surprise and wonder, looked exactly like the expression Baekhyun had worn the first time he had seen him. The memory made Chanyeol grin. 

The smile on his face seemed to calm and steady Baekhyun somewhat because he let out a huff of laughter before taking Chanyeol’s hand and letting him lead him along to the dance floor. 

When they had taken their places to the far left of the middle of the floor, they both took a similar deep breath as they put their arms and hands into position, sharing a nervous a smile. 

“I’m taking your waist,” Baekhyun said. 

“Might as well, I’m horrible at dancing. It’d be better if you lead,” Chanyeol muttered, making Baekhyun laugh. Having Baekhyun laugh so close to him made a volcano of butterflies erupt in Chanyeol’s stomach. 

And then they were dancing, Baekhyun leading them through it. And despite how much shorter he was than Chanyeol or how thin and small he looked, he led Chanyeol through the dance. His hand on Chanyeol’s waist, pushing him in the right direction, through all the spins and twirls and turns until everything around them became a blur of sound and color, fading away far into the background.

The dance was so complicated and it took so much focus that Chanyeol couldn’t even get a word out, just shared grins at successful moves that Chanyeol hadn’t practiced ever since he had learned them with Jongin when he was younger. 

But something about Baekhyun looking at him like this made him think that he could do everything and anything. 

After they had that danced, the three pairs danced another and then another until the rest of the guests got used to the sight and started dancing along with them once more. 

When finally a slower song started playing and Chanyeol could finally breathe (as much as he could breathe with Baekhyun pressed up against him), he finally found his voice again. 

“You’re a great dancer,” Chanyeol said as they swayed this way and that along with the music. They had long lost his brothers in the crowd, still dancing with their respective partners. 

“You’re not too bad yourself,” Baekhyun murmured back before grinning up at him. “Although, that may indeed be because of me.”

Chanyeol laughed, shaking his head. Finally, _finally_ , it felt like how it felt like between them all those years ago. Comfortable and fun and exciting and new and lovely and as Chanyeol stared at Baekhyun as they danced, he wished time would stop. 

So, he’d live in this one moment, content and happy. 

The song came to an end after a few more minutes and Chanyeol found that he didn’t want to let go of Baekhyun’s hand. To the utter shock of his wildly beating heart, it seemed that Baekhyun didn’t want to let go of Chanyeol’s hand either. 

“You want to take a break?”

Chanyeol nodded, only now noticing just how tired he was. 

“Come on,” Baekhyun smiled at him, jerking his head toward somewhere before pulling Chanyeol along with him. “ I think the people can handle missing their prince for more than a few more minutes. I’m not the one who’s supposed to be celebrated anyway.”

Baekhyun led him through the crowd of dancing people, only a few turning their heads to look at them for most were already intoxicated and were too busy having their own fun. Peeking over the heads of all the people, just to check if he was alright, Chanyeol looked for a tuft of silver hair and just as he expected it stood out. 

The young princes sat at one table, eating from a bowl of sliced fruits as they talked, Sehun still flushed from the dance and Jongin more demure and shy than Chanyeol had ever seen him. Seeing Jongin in good hands, Chanyeol tried to focus on his own situation.

It didn’t take them long to squeeze themselves between the people to get to the well-lit, spacious balcony with twin wings of staircases on each side that led to the gardens. With a wave of Baekhyun’s hand, the guards posted on the sides of the doors, found somewhere else to be. 

Baekhyun headed straight for the balcony ledge, letting Chanyeol’s hand go in the process. Still, Chanyeol followed. 

“I haven’t had that much fun in a party in ages,” Baekhyun exclaimed, smiling wider than he had ever seen him smile since they were kids. The smile brought a smile to Chanyeol’s own face but a hint of confusion dropped into his line of thought. 

“But I saw you smiling as you danced with the guests,” Chanyeol cocked his head to the side. 

Baekhyun slumped forward on his arms, looking at the gardens below them. 

“It’s hard to remember I’m not conflicted during parties like this,” Baekhyun said softly, the smile on his face softer and sad. “So many things to do and think about and consider. Sometimes, I wish that we were just in our meadow, talking about anything and nothing.”

“What do you have to think about?” Chanyeol asked, copying Baekhyun and leaning forward on his arms to get a good look at Baekhyun’s face – to read whatever he was actually feeling through his eyes and his expressions. 

“Stuff,” Baekhyun sighed, before swinging back and glancing up above them, at the stars Chanyeol so loved to watch. 

“Junmyeon’s a little bit too young to be a king, don’t you think?” Chanyeol said, glancing at the corner Baekhyun from the corner of his eyes, gauging how he’d react. 

“The three of us are much too young to be running the country on our own,” Baekhyun admitted, looking everywhere except at Chanyeol. “Well, of course, Kyungsoo helps but even _he_ is too young. He’s even younger than I am but much more reliable.”

“Will you tell me what happened?”

Baekhyun’s eyes narrowed slightly as if he were deciding what parts to tell and parts were too personal to tell. 

“Our parents and most of their friends and advisors were on a ship toward Yixing’s kingdom for the wedding of an old friend when a storm hit and left them all at the bottom of the ocean. It was months before we heard about what actually happened. Months I spent with you.”

This time, Baekhyun looked directly at Chanyeol, making him look him in the eyes. Chanyeol had never seen his eyes so blank and devoid of any light. 

“I couldn’t handle the strange silence in the castle so I would run to the forest and sing the songs my mother would sing to me when I got too anxious. And when I met you and you showed me this whole new side of the world, you made me forget what I was ever worried about. But, of course, the day after I made that promise with you, I had to break it because a letter had finally come after months of no news.”

He was telling the story like it wasn’t his own, detached. 

“So, Junmyeon got crowned king when he was 16 and I had to do everything I could to help him through it. Especially with so many vultures trying to take the throne from us. Our parents’ closest friends who had stayed helped us keep the kingdom running when we were younger and they’re in the council still but I couldn’t stand seeing Junmyeon sit on that throne alone and trying to look strong. So, I studied and I trained and I learned everything I could so he wouldn’t go through it on his own. I haven’t stopped working since.”

“Will you forgive me for breaking my promise?” He smiled up at Chanyeol sadly when he was finished telling his story.

Chanyeol could only imagine how hard it was for them to lose the people they loved and be dumped with not only taking care of their family but a whole kingdom with them. 

Chanyeol shook his head, his heart breaking but he forced himself not to cry. If Baekhyun wasn’t crying, then he sure as hell isn’t.

“There’s nothing to forgive,” he simply said. 

After taking another breath of the fresh, night air, Baekhyun smiled at him and nodded in thanks then turned back to the blinding light of the party and Chanyeol could see how his Baekhyun was disappearing and Prince Baekhyun came to the surface. All bright smiles and kind nods and considerate words. 

Chanyeol started walking behind him but something in his reflection through the glass windows made him stop. With the shining moonlight casting him in radiant light, he could see his reflection clearly on the glass covered by the dark drapes on the other side.

His hair. 

His hair was darker. 

“Wait,” Chanyeol said before he could stop himself, tearing his eyes from his reflection and setting his eyes instead on Baekhyun, not believing what he had just seen. 

Baekhyun turned to look at him, an inquisitive smile on his face. 

“Hm?”

Chanyeol stepped closer to him until only a foot separated them, his eyes searching Baekhyun’s eyes desperately for any proof of his change in his feelings other than the darker shade of his hair. Baekhyun, though confused, didn’t yield a step. 

“Is something wrong?”

“No,” Chanyeol murmured. 

He couldn’t bring himself to ask the question his mind was screaming at him to ask so he decided to do the next big thing. 

Slowly, he brought his hand to Baekhyun’s cheek and to Chanyeol’s surprise, he didn’t flinch away and instead leaned his cheek more into Chanyeol’s cupped hand, his eyes sparkling with worry and concern for him. 

But Chanyeol could only focus on his pounding heart and the way Baekhyun’s lips looked under the moonlight. The way he licked at the bottom lip only fueled Chanyeol more and before he knew it he was leaning in and pressing the lightest of kisses on those pretty lips of his. 

It was just a peck, Chanyeol told himself, to see if Baekhyun would pull away or push him away in disgust. 

Baekhyun didn’t. 

Instead, he brought his arms up, threading his fingers in the hair at Chanyeol’s nape, pulling himself closer as he kissed him back fiercely. Chanyeol let his hand travel down the expanse of Baekhyun’s side, settling both of his hands on the prince’s hips, trying to catch up with the way Baekhyun kissed him, his blood rushing to his ears. 

The bond between them tugged and tugged on Chanyeol’s gut and he wondered if Baekhyun felt it too.

But just as Chanyeol was pulling him closer, a groan at the back of his throat, Baekhyun pulled away, his eyes wide at what they had done. He settled himself back down on his feet, his chest heaving, looking away from Chanyeol, flush and biting his lip.

Chanyeol was sure _his_ cheeks _and_ his ears were burning.  

“We can’t do this,” Baekhyun suddenly said, his face contorting in what seemed like pain. “Why do you think I’ve been avoiding you this past week?”

“Give me a good reason why we can’t,” Chanyeol demanded. Now that he knew that he had a chance (From the way Baekhyun had kissed him, he knew it was more than _just_ a chance) there was no way Chanyeol wasn’t fighting for it. 

He had just kissed his mate and he had never felt anything like it. It felt like everything that went wrong in Chanyeol’s life felt unto the right place just so he could reach this moment and he wasn’t about to let it get away. 

“Because I want Junmyeon and Sehun to be happy!”

Chanyeol had never seen Baekhyun so agitated than right now with the way his shoulders hunched inwards and the way his face contorted angrily. But everything about lacked conviction, Chanyeol could tell.

“What the hell does that have to do with anything?” 

“Did you see them in there?” Baekhyun asked him, pointing behind him into the ongoing birthday party beyond. 

“I’m not blind,” Chanyeol said stonily. 

“They’re in love!”

“And that’s so bad, because?!”

The way that Baekhyun was shouting, Chanyeol couldn’t help but shout with him. Both of them were grateful for the upbeat village song the musicians had decided to play. The people, singing and dancing and clapping amongst themselves that any sound of the two’s argument was drowned out. 

“They’re in love with _men_. Much like how I’m so close to being.”

Chanyeol’s heart stopped beating at those words but Baekhyun continued as if he were finally letting a dam break and all the words he had been keeping for the past week came crashing down.

“Kings are expected to produce heirs with their _wives_ to ensure the future of their kingdom. But the way things are, it’ll fall on me to fulfill that role. When Junmyeon ever gets the balls to ask Yixing to marry him, I’m going to have to step up and take the crown because the people won’t allow a king that doesn’t have an heir.”

Then Baekhyun’s voice went soft and the fact that Chanyeol could still hear the way he murmured despite the noise from inside only proved to show him that he still had some of that supernatural hearing and that meant Baekhyun didn’t fully love him yet. 

“I had hoped Sehun would step up when the day came and he was ready but seeing him with Jongin, happy and on his way to falling in love, I knew that I couldn’t force that decision on to him. If he wants to be with Jongin then he’ll be with Jongin. If Myeon wants to be with Yixing then I’ll do everything I can to make sure he can. I’ve spent ten years readying myself for this.”

“There are other options, you know,” Chanyeol said softly. 

“None that can ensure their happiness like this can.”

“What about your own happiness?”

Baekhyun started walking away after Chanyeol had asked the question. 

“I haven’t been happy for myself in a long time. It’s not such a hard feeling to live with.”

“Bull crap,” Chanyeol barked at him but he was already gone. 

It was another hour before Chanyeol saw Baekhyun again, half an hour after Chanyeol had finally calmed himself down to enter the ballroom again without wanting to burn everything in his path. As he passed by the few of the shined silver on the walls of the pillars he saw as clear as day that his hair had turned this dark-reddish black hue that told him enough about Baekhyun’s true feelings. 

As he stalked over to a table to sulk, he didn’t look at anyone, he didn’t try to find Jongin or Sehun or Baekhyun. He looked for a table to sit at and rest his head on because he was feeling so physically and emotionally tired. That little spat they had was temporary, he knew. He just had to find a way to convince Baekhyun that there might be other options where all three of them ended up happy. 

He had just gotten to a table and crashed on to a comfortable seat when everyone did the same, moving to the side or taking a seat. And as they moved, Chanyeol no longer had to look for wherever Baekhyun was because as the crowd parted, Chanyeol had a clear view of him on the piano bench, staring at the keys. 

“I haven’t played in a long time,” Baekhyun said loud enough for the whole room to hear. “But since it’s Sehun’s birthday, I’m going to add a little bit more to your happiness tonight and play for you like you requested.”

Sehun, sitting on the throne with Junmyeon and Yixing by his side, Jongin nowhere to be seen, raised a glass, not taking his eyes off of his older brother, those eyes shining with love and gratitude. Chanyeol wondered how much that gaze in his eyes would grow once he realized what Baekhyun had been planning. 

But then Baekhyun started playing and everything around them faded away. 

No matter how much Chanyeol wanted to respect Baekhyun’s decision, he couldn’t. Not when he knew Baekhyun wouldn’t end up happy in the end, married to a woman he didn’t love. 

And, so, Chanyeol listened to Baekhyun, letting a tear fall at just how beautiful he played and how, no matter how he thought about it, he didn’t know what to do. 

It must’ve been getting close to 4 in the morning before Chanyeol built up the courage to walk back to the room they shared. He had long stripped the jacket he wore. Now, it was draped on his arm, as worn and as wrinkly as he felt. He had roamed the castle halls alone after Baekhyun’s performance, unable to stay in the room. The party had been over for hours now and yet he couldn’t bring himself to go back to the room until he was sure Baekhyun was fast asleep. 

Because he didn’t know what to say to him. 

And he didn’t know if there was anything he could say to Baekhyun to convince him to change his mind or to at least take him as a lover. Even just that. 

Because Chanyeol didn’t want to live an immortal life without him by his side. 

He sighed as he opened the door, running a hand down his face. All the candles were blown out, the only light coming from outside, lighting up just enough of the room inside for Chanyeol to make his way to the bedroom where he planned to just flop down on his bed but was stopped when he saw that it was occupied. 

By Baekhyun who was drinking straight from what seemed to be an expensive bottle of wine. 

“I didn’t think you’d come back,” Baekhyun hiccupped when he saw Chanyeol standing there, shocked. His shirt and boots were off but he was wearing pajama bottoms, thank the gods.

“I thought you had left and had given up on me.”

“Never,” Chanyeol said in a voice barely more than a whisper. Before Baekhyun could take another swig, Chanyeol swiped the bottle from him.

“You’re so sweet, you know,” Baekhyun slurred as Chanyeol set the bottle to the side. 

“Thank you,” Chanyeol merely said, helping Baekhyun up from his seat on his bed and half carrying him dragging him back to his own bed. 

It took a lot of struggling and soft caresses from Baekhyun that had Chanyeol melting but Chanyeol finally had Baekhyun tucked in but the moment he turned away, Baekhyun clasped his wrist with a hand. 

“Stay with me, please,” Baekhyun said.  “I don’t want you to leave.”

“I know you don’t,” Chanyeol sighed. “You’re stubborn and stupid like that.”

“Stay in bed with me,” Baekhyun insisted. “You’re warm and I like the way you feel.”

Chanyeol didn’t even have the energy to argue or blush or anything. He just wanted to sleep. So, he stood to get changed, assuring the suddenly clingy Baekhyun that he was going to come back. 

Only when Chanyeol was slipping beneath the sheets did he finally feel the rush of embarrassment and anticipation though it was dulled by exhaustion. Baekhyun cuddled up to him as soon as he was settled. 

And Chanyeol could have lived with it had Baekhyun not suddenly hefted himself up and pressed a kiss on Chanyeol’s lips. The first thing that went through his mind was how his lips remembered how soft Baekhyun’s lips felt and the second thing was that, as soon as he tasted the alcohol on his lips, he realized that Baekhyun was drunk and he wasn’t going to take advantage of it. 

Chanyeol gently pushed him away. 

“Let’s just get some sleep, huh?” Chanyeol suggested. 

“But I want to kiss you more.”

“You’re drunk.”

“Drunk on you maybe.”

Then he started giggling before settling down and once more cuddling up to Chanyeol. Chanyeol had to smile at his cuteness. He very rarely saw Baekhyun like this and his heart ached to wonder if he would ever see it again. Or if Baekhyun would ever let him into his bed to hold him like this again. 

“My brothers say I’m very noisy when I get drunk,” Baekhyun suddenly said into the quiet night air. 

Chanyeol chuckled, glancing down at Baekhyun who had decided to settle himself on Chanyeol’s chest. 

“I can see that. I have this weird habit of saying ‘I love you’ a lot when I get drunk, too.”

“Then, I’m going to have to get you drunk, then. I want to hear you say it to me. I want to hear you say you love me.”

Chanyeol wrapped his arms around Baekhyun, trying to enjoy the only time Baekhyun would ever let him do so.

“You don’t have to get me drunk to hear me say that I love you.”

“Prove it,” Baekhyun said sleepily, his eyes already closing. 

“I love you. Since the moment I realized you were my mate I have loved you. Maybe even before that. I love you and I don’t think I’ll ever stop loving you.”

** Baekhyun’s POV **

Thank god for the medic’s tonic he had drunk before the party. Despite the amount of alcohol he had consumed last night (most of which he had drunk in his room as he waited for Chanyeol to come back), there wasn’t anything more than a slight pounding in his head and a weight on his chest as any sign of him being hung over. 

After he opened his eyes he quickly realized that the weight on his chest wasn’t because of the hangover though. 

It was Chanyeol, fast asleep, his head resting on his chest and an arm thrown over Baekhyun’s bare waist. The sight made Baekhyun’s heart stop in his chest. 

He had been imagining sleeping next to Chanyeol ever since he had arrived and been forced to sleep in the same room just a bed away. Before going to sleep, Baekhyun would sit on the edge of Chanyeol’s bed and brush away the red hair that he noticed was getting darker by the day from his forehead before bending down to press a kiss on his forehead gently. 

He’d never really thought about waking up beside him, though but he was sure that his imagination couldn’t have ever come close to what he was seeing and feeling at this moment. 

He lifted a hand and rested it gently on Chanyeol’s hair, missing the pink hue it used to have but like this Baekhyun felt closer to him. It didn’t feel as if Baekhyun had to constantly put him at an arm’s length away because he was different. Not that there was anything wrong with that. He found Chanyeol beautiful in whichever form he preferred. 

Baekhyun didn’t remember how they had ended up in the same bed together or what was said between them. He cringed inwardly at the words he might have blurted out while drunk, sighing to himself as he continued running his fingers through Chanyeol’s hair. 

But he remembered what had gone down at the balcony during the party and the way he had run after they had finally kissed. 

Honestly, though the rest of what he said was true, he was just scared. Scared of what loving Chanyeol meant. How Chanyeol would be immortal and be beautiful while Baekhyun grew old and grey and he’d grow tired of him. Such trivial, basic insecurities he couldn’t push away even as Chanyeol kissed him back. 

_ ‘There are other options _ , _’_ Chanyeol had said.

Baekhyun was well aware of all of them but most of all he was aware that this decision he was making wasn’t his decision alone. Junmyeon and Sehun had a say in how this all went down and he didn’t have the right to make any choices for them. 

He blinked in surprise at himself. 

All throughout the week, Baekhyun had been convincing himself that he had to deal with this on his own and that he, alone, had to bear the burden but here he was _. Actually_ considering talking it all over with his brothers. Maybe they’d come up with a solution that didn’t have to end up with Baekhyun breaking his own heart. 

He smiled down at Chanyeol still snoring softly on his chest. 

Maybe they’d come up with a solution wherein Baekhyun would finally let himself fall in love with the man already in his heart. 

** Chanyeol’s POV **

“Chanyeol,” someone said softly but excitedly. 

“Chanyeol, wake up.”

Chanyeol could only groan and snuggle up closer to his pillow, not even fazed that it seemed to be breathing. His pillow let out a laugh, probably the most wonderful sound Chanyeol could ever wake up to. 

“Wake up,” his pillow laughed again. “Your hair, it changed color right in front of my eyes. Is it supposed to do that?”

His eyes flew open, pushing himself up on his arms to find Baekhyun shirtless and smiling beneath him. It was too early for Chanyeol’s heart to be attacked like this.

“Good morning,” Baekhyun said when he realized that Chanyeol might not talk for a few more seconds. “Your hair is black now by the way.”

And Chanyeol choked up when he realized what that meant for the both of them.

“Why are you crying?” Baekhyun scrambled up on to a sitting position, bringing his hands to Chanyeol’s face. 

He knew that if he tried to summon fire now, there’d be nothing to see because all of it was gone and Baekhyun loved him completely but he didn’t know he did.

“It’s nothing,” Chanyeol insisted, shaking his head, trying to think up a lame excuse. “I’m just sad you had to wake me up.  I can understand why you always sleep in. This bed is as comfortable as hell.”

“I know, right?” Baekhyun laughed lightly but still used his fingers to push Chanyeol’s face up to look at him directly. “But you’ve never been a good liar. That isn’t what you’re crying about, is it?”

Chanyeol kept silent as he stared into Baekhyun’s brown eyes, so much like his eyes when he was younger but now filled with wisdom and maturity. 

“Is this about last night?” Baekhyun’s brows nudged toward each other. “Because if it is then I should probably say that I might have thought of a solution. A bad one but better than having to pretend –”

Baekhyun swallowed. 

“Than having to pretend that I’m not utterly falling in love with you.”

Chanyeol just stared and stared. 

“The solution isn’t to drink yourself to a stupor to forget your aching heart, is it?”

Baekhyun blinked at him and then let out a bark of bright laughter that seemed to make the sun shine brighter. 

“So, does this mean you’ll give whatever this is between us a chance?” Chanyeol asked.

A smile from Baekhyun. 

“Yes,” Baekhyun breathed out as he leaned forward to press a kiss on Chanyeol’s lips. 

The mating bond between them flared and Chanyeol wondered if Baekhyun felt it, too.

“But first, you’re going to have to stay here,” Baekhyun said, pulling away, his eyes still closed from the kiss they shared. Chanyeol let out a small laugh at the sight.

“Like right here?” Chanyeol raised an amused brow. 

“Yes, right here. I have to talk to my brothers.” Baekhyun then scrambled out of bed, pulling clothes out of his drawers. 

Chanyeol looked away, red in the face when he started pulling his pants down, a playful smirk on his face. Baekhyun let out a laugh when he did. 

“I mean it, Chanyeol. I want to see you right there when I get back, alright?” And with that Baekhyun was striding out of the room, leaving Chanyeol in his pajamas, slightly confused but happy.

Chanyeol fell back on to the bed, biting his lip as giddiness rushed through him. What a change a few hours could bring? Just a few hours ago, he had been sulking and now – now Baekhyun was in love with him. 

A flash of light erupted from somewhere above and behind him. A flash of light one second then Jongin looking down at him with a smile on his face the next. 

“Your hair is black,” Jongin said. 

“I know,” Chanyeol said, scrambling up on to a seated position, his heart swelling in his chest. “And I can’t believe it.”

They shared grins. 

“I just came from Sehun’s room,” Jongin chuckled as he sat on the bed beside him. “I barely got my clothes on and teleported away before Baekhyun came bursting in.”

“And what were you doing in Sehun’s room?”

“Giving him a birthday gift,” Jongin shrugged but the smile on his face had Chanyeol grabbing a pillow and slamming it at the back of his friend’s head. 

“Ow!” Jongin exclaimed, laughing all the while. 

“I’m glad _you’re_ having fun,” Chanyeol huffed even as his cheeks warmed at whatever might have happened between the princes, his mind wandering to… 

He snapped himself out of it, his face flaming red. 

“Have you told him you like it in the ass yet?”

Chanyeol shouted in outrage, tackling a laughing Jongin down on to the floor as he choked on his own embarrassment. 

“Helpful tip, Jongin. I’ll keep it in mind,” Baekhyun’s laughing voice rose over Jongin’s shouts of indignation as Chanyeol tried to smother him with a pillow. Chanyeol went flying to his feet at the sound of Baekhyun’s voice, speechless and red and embarrassed beyond belief. 

“It’s not what you think,” Chanyeol began. 

“It’s exactly what you think,” Jongin said from the floor. Chanyeol gave him a good kick on the ribs. Jongin still had his immortal, Fae strength, the kick wouldn’t even bruise. 

“Sehun, can you please escort your wonderful lover out of my room so I can talk to mine in private?” Baekhyun said, his expression still bright and amused. 

At the sound of Sehun’s name, Jongin sat up from the ground, his hair messy and clothes ruffled but that didn’t seem to bother him when Sehun stepped into the room, laughing. 

“Come on, my brother can go figure out what it is Chanyeol actually wants on his own.”

Jongin stood up and immediately grabbed Sehun’s outstretched hand. Before they walked out, Sehun turned back to give him a wink, laughing as they left. 

“So, what is it you want?” Baekhyun asked playfully as he started walking closer to Chanyeol, a hint of smile on the edge of his lips. 

Chanyeol blushed but didn’t back down. 

“You. Always you.”

This time Baekhyun did laugh, wrapping his arms around Chanyeol’s waist as he did so. 

“I’m glad to hear that because the three of us have thought of a plan.”

“Does it include all of you ending up with happily ever afters?”

“Close enough,” Baekhyun pursed his lips as he considered. 

“Then, I’m all for it.”

They exchanged smiles before leaning into each other for a kiss, both of them smiling through it. When they had finally pulled apart, they were both breathless, their eyes sparkling. 

“Now, what was this about wanting it in the – “

“Don’t!” Chanyeol exclaimed, putting his hands on Baekhyun’s mouth to stop him from talking. 

“-finish that sentence. Please. If you love me, don’t finish that sentence.”

From the way Baekhyun’s eyes had turned into crescent moons, Chanyeol could tell that he was laughing behind Chanyeol’s hands. After a few seconds, Baekhyun started pulling at the hand, making him remove it. 

“I promise not to say it, if you do me a favor.”

Chanyeol narrowed his eyes at him doubtfully but nodded. 

“Tell me you love me.”

Chanyeol grinned. 

“But I already did, last night, when you were drunk off your ass.”

“You did?”

“I did.”

“Well, then, repeat it for me. Word for word.”

Chanyeol flicked hi on the forehead. 

“Spoiled,” Chanyeol tsked. 

Before Baekhyun could get back at him, Chanyeol had already started talking. 

“I love you. Since the moment I realized you were my mate, I have loved you. Maybe even before that. I love you and I don’t think I’ll ever stop loving you.”

Baekhyun stepped back in surprise. 

“Your mate?” Baekhyun breathed. 

Chanyeol could only smile. 

“Yes, _my_ mate.”

“Does that mean you’re mine?” Baekhyun looked up at him, hope and love sparkling in those brown eyes of his. 

“I’m yours and you’re mine.”

** The End  **

 


End file.
